Story of a lonely girl
by dark sk8er girl
Summary: Claire, eighteen and abused by her parents in 2008 only wishes to be safe. Soon she's whisked away to 1192 where she just might find that! And more perhaps!
1. Oblivion

**This is my very first fanfiction so please be nice with the reviews. I don't own Robin Hood or Will but I do own the OCs. **

**Claire is eighteen and abused by her parents. One day, wishing to be safe, she finds herself; her friend and brother are somehow in 1192. I guess it's a comedy/romance/fantasy/adventure. Please read and I hope you enjoy.**

**Oblivion**

Note: Every chapter ends with a song

_2008:_

"Claire! Hurry up!"

Emma called her friend indignantly. She was waiting by the door to Claire's house, tapping her foot impatiently. She was dressed in jeans and an orange t-shirt and had a green jacket tied around her waist. Her blonde hair was tied back into a ponytail but several strands had fallen out and were framing her high cheek bones and bright blue eyes. If you saw Emma, you would describe her as 'cute' not pretty.

Soon Claire came out of the front door and beamed at Emma. Now Claire would be what you'd call beautiful.

"Hi Emma. Sorry about that. Mum wanted me to finish tidying," she said in a soft, gentle voice as they set off down the path. As they walked past neatly clipped hedges and well pruned rose bushes, Emma examined Claire. She was wearing a long sleeved white t- shirt and black jogging bottoms. She also had a dark pink neck scarf tied around her neck.

"Are you cold?' asked Emma curiously. Claire smiled but shook her head so her long, brown hair swung like a curtain. However Emma wasn't convinced and couldn't be lied to.

"You can't lie to _me_ Claire Radley!" she said, her nostrils flaring. Claire's smile faded and she glanced worriedly over her shoulder.

"I'll tell you when we get into the woods," she whispered and she begun walking a little faster. Emma was confused but she had a feeling she knew what Claire was going to tell her. Soon they were walking down a path into the woods. They lived in East Nottingham and the woods they had just walked into what was Sherwood Forest. Claire walked off the path and through the trees. Emma followed stumbling over the roots of a large oak tree.

"Claire, where are we going?" she asked.

"I don't want us heard," said Claire. Eventually they came to a stop in a narrow clearing. Claire had her back to Emma.

"What's wrong?" Emma asked worriedly even though she thought she already knew the answer. Claire turned and rolled up one of the sleeves of her top and confirmed Emma's fear. Her arm was a mass of cuts, bruises and there was one mark that, to Emma's horror, looked like a burn. Claire's eyes were filled with tears.

"Your Dad…" said Emma shortly. Claire nodded.

"They _hate_ me," she whispered. Emma's eyes widened.

"Not your mum too!" she exclaimed.

"Yes. Dad beats me because he gets drunk all the time and then Mum takes her anger out on me. You know, she makes me do all the house work while she just sits in front of the TV, smokes and shouts at me and Dad. If I do something wrong she'll give me a cut. She calls Dad a b!%!$£ and a f!%%(^ and she calls me a s*&%. Oh! Please don't cry Emma!"

Emma had tears streaming down her face.

"It makes me _sick!"_ she gasped. "Just sick. That someone as clever and talented as you has to suffer like this! You are a black belt in karate, I've seen you in the fencing and archery competitions and you got all your GCSE's and A levels. Why can't you move out? You're legally an adult!" she moaned. Claire sniffed.

"I've tried to run away but Mum and Dad literally know everyone so if anyone sees me they go and tell them and then I get caught and beaten again. Besides I don't have any money, they won't let me get a job," she wailed. Emma hugged Claire.

"If you're brother knew about this…" said Emma, patting Claire's head as she sobbed onto her shoulder. Jacob was three years older than Claire and lived away from Claire and his parents.

"He should be here soon. I wanted to see him so badly. In fact you two are the only friends I've got! I'm too scared to bring people over!" Claire sniffed. And sure enough there was the sound of leaves rustling and twigs snapping and Jacob Radley came into the clearing. He was very handsome, dressed in brown trousers and a grey jacket. He was tall, muscular and had light brown hair which flopped over his dark blue eyes which were now stormy grey with rage. He walked over to Claire and hugged her.

"I am a failure as a brother! I should have taken you with me the moment I realised I was going to move out!" he snarled. Claire hugged him back, her breathing becoming easier. Suddenly there was more rustling and snapping as someone was coming near them.

"You didn't bring anyone, did you?" gasped Claire. Jacob shook his head.

"No I swear-" but he was cut off. A man came into the clearing.

"Claire? You better come with me. Mummy and Daddy aren't happy that you walked off like that!" he said leering at her.

'Great another beating,' Claire thought bitterly. The man made a grab for her but she leapt away. The man snarled and reached into his jacket. Claire's heart began to thump in her chest.

'I want to be safe! I want to be safe!' she thought desperately as the man pulled out a knife. But before he could strike, Claire felt a jolt near her stomach and felt as though she was being pulled upwards. The man vanished but Emma and Jacob were still next to her, both of whom looked shocked and puzzled. The trees and the plants all went out of focus but soon came back in. The strange sensation had stopped and they all hit the forest floor. They all looked around wildly. They were still in Sherwood but it looked a bit different. The old oak, birch and holly trees they'd grown to know now looked younger and the path had seemed to have disappeared. Claire looked up. The sun was still burning.

"Are we still in Sherwood?" asked Emma. Jacob looked around slowly, analysing the situation.

"The question is not _where _we are," he said slowly. "It is _when _we are?" Claire gasped and Emma clasped her hands over her mouth.

"Who are you?" barked a deep, slow voice behind them making them jump.

_1192:_

Will Scarlet came out of his hut after a long nights sleep and cast a weary eye around the camp they lived in. Much was sitting by a roaring fire, cooking some venison while his friend Allan A Dale sat opposite him, still quite sleepy. Robin stood quite a distance away from the camp practising his archery and Djaq sat in the doorway of her hut, sharpening the blade of her sword.

"Where's John?" asked Will, sitting by the fire, trying to warm his feet.

"Went hunting," replied Much, handing him a plate of food.

"And taking his time," grumbled Allan, taking the food Much had offered him. Robin suddenly stopped firing arrows and turned around.

"There you are John! About time. What did I tell you about bringing strangers into the-" Robin didn't finish his sentence. He was staring at one of the people John had brought to the camp.

"They were lost," grunted John. Will glanced at the strangers as Djaq went over to them and his jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

They were two women and one man. The blonde woman was nice looking and the man was fairly handsome but the brown haired woman…

She was tall, slender and willowy and had, in Will's opinion, such breath taking beauty. Her long brown hair was sleek, straight and shone in the light. She had almond shaped eyes which were the most amazing green. She had a serene expression on her face and was in complete contrast to her companions who looked worried and suspicious. She couldn't have been any older than eighteen. She glanced at Will and smiled, showing white and perfectly straight teeth. Will felt his face burn and he quickly closed his mouth. He looked at Allan who was wearing a similar expression to him, the drool practically coming out of his mouth. Robin was also gaping at her. Djaq bounded up to her in her friendly way and shook her hand.

"I'm Djaq! Who are you?" she said brightly and cheerfully. The girl beamed and went she spoke, her voice was soft and gentle, like velvet.

"I'm Claire. It's nice to meet you. This is my brother Jacob and my friend Emma," she said gesturing to her companions.

"What were you saying about not bringing strangers into the camp?" asked John, smirking at Robin. Claire's pretty eyes widened.

"If you don't want us here, we'll leave. We won't give you trouble," she said anxiously.

"NO!" burst out Will, Allan and Robin at once. An angel had just entered the camp and they wanted her to stay. Claire looked startled at the outburst.

"I – I mean…" stuttered Robin. "It's not any trouble… you can all stay. Will can build you huts to stay in can't you Will?" he asked the carpenter. Unable to find his voice while staring at Claire, he simply nodded. She gave him a glowing smile and Will thought that his heart was beating a thousand miles a minute. Emma and Jacob obviously weren't as friendly as Claire because they sat down together without saying a word to any of the gang but Claire glided forward and Will immediately moved over so she could sit next to him. Allan glared.

"How much Venison would you like?" Much asked Claire.

"Have you eaten yet?" Claire asked and Much shook his head. "Well you have yours first," she insisted.

"Big mistake! If you let Much eat first then you won't get any later," said Allan. Much glared at him.

"Very funny," he muttered but Claire shrugged.

"I've already eaten so don't worry," she said. Will tried to eat but because he couldn't stop looking at her he kept missing his mouth so he eventually gave up. Everyone was chatting loudly not really paying attention to Claire or Will although Allan kept glancing at her every now and then. Now she was so close to him he could smell her. Her hair had a floral scent. She smelt of rose; sweet and musky. Claire was looking closely at the huts.

"Did you build these?" she asked pointing to the huts.

"Err… yes I did," he said quietly.

"All on your own?" she asked curiously.

"Yeah,"

"Who taught you how to build them?"

"My Dad taught me. He was a carpenter in Locksley and everyone told me how he literally built the whole village. He's a great Dad. My mum died when I was sixteen so he had to look after both of us on his own," he said suddenly feeling quite proud of his father.

'Lucky' thought Claire.

"And he taught you how to build them? That's really cool!" she said grinning at him. Will flushed again.

"Where's your Dad living?" Claire asked.

"He lives in Scarborough with my aunt and my little brother Luke," said Will. Claire was still smiling.

"I didn't catch your last name," she said.

"Scarlet," he said. "Will Scarlet,"

"That's nice," she said politely.

"Where did you say you were from?" asked Will. He immediately noticed that Claire nervously glanced at Jacob.

"I didn't," she said quickly. Will frowned. She looked a little uncomfortable.

"Do you mind me asking?" he said quietly.

"No of course not! I… think I'm from Nottingham," she said still looking at her brother.

"Who do you live with?" he asked. 'Your husband?' he thought to himself.

"I live with my parents," she muttered. He was surprised to hear a hint of bitterness in her normally gentle voice.

"So your not married or anything?" he asked timidly. Claire half- smiled half- grimaced.

"I wish," she said darkly. This raised Will's hope slightly.

"Will? Are you going to eat that?" asked Much loudly. Will looked down at his plate and saw that he hadn't eaten any of it. He'd been to busy looking and talking to Claire and had lost his appetite.

"No. You can have it Much," said Will grinning at his friend and passing the plate. His arm nudged Claire slightly and he could have sworn he saw her wince. He then saw Jacob look sharply at Claire for a moment but Claire averted his gaze. Soon the gang got to their feet. Robin picked up his bow again and went to practise firing. Djaq said she was going to gather herbs and berries for medicine. John stalked off without saying anything and Allan muttered something about going for a walk.

"Will? Can you go and get some more kindling? We're nearly out and I don't like it when it gets cold," said Much.

Will got to his feet and grabbed his trusted axe. Claire also got up.

"Mind if I come?" she asked shyly. Will shook his head. The more time he could spend with her the better.

They walked out of the camp and soon came to a tree that had fallen, all its spindly roots showing. Claire recognised it immediately. It was the same tree she and Jacob used to play on when they were little. She didn't know it was _that _old. Will noticed Claire looking at it.

"There was a storm last week. Didn't know it was that strong," he mumbled and began chopping up some broken logs.

"If you could just hold it there…" said Will. Claire held the log in place and Will cut it up easily. His axe got caught in the wood and he tugged hard to get it out. When it finally came loose his accidentally elbowed Claire in the arm quite hard. Claire flinched and bit her lip hard.

"Sorry!" said Will. Claire rubbed her arm gently.

"It's alright," she said but Will thought she was lying. It looked like he'd quite hurt her. She held the wood again so he could continue chopping. He raised his axe but stiffened. Claire's sleeve had been pulled up slightly so he could see her wrist and - .

"What's wrong with your wrist?" he asked. Claire tried to pull her sleeve down.

"Nothing," she said too quickly. Will gently took her hand and pushed her sleeve up her arm and winced.

Her whole arm was covered in bruises, scratches and cuts.

"Is that a _burn?_" he asked sounding horrified. Claire nodded sadly. She lifted her other sleeve, which was equally damaged and tugged the scarf off her neck. There was a long cut around her throat. Will looked appalled.

"Were you tortured or something?" he asked.

"In a manner of speaking," she said, her velvet voice full of bitterness.

"What do you mean?" he asked, staring at her.

"My Dad and Mum beat me," she muttered.

"What? Why?"

"My Dad's a drunk. Spends everything penny he earns on drink and I get beaten. That's where all the bruises come from. My Mum forces me to do everything. Like cleaning, washing and cooking. If I don't do them perfectly, she cuts me with a knife. She also blames me because of Dad drinking. She says I came between them. They both hate me,"

'HOW COULD ANYONE HATE AN ANGEL LIKE YOU?!' Will thought furiously.

"You should show these to Djaq. Didn't you try to get away?" he said. Claire laughed darkly.

"Oh I've tried! You could say I'm used to sleeping rough because I've tried to run away so often. But they set up spies everywhere so I've got nowhere to hide,"

Claire avoided his gaze. She'd just poured her greatest secret out to a complete stranger. But there was something about Will. Claire felt tears forming in her eyes. She'd never told anyone how much her parents had hurt her. Will's hand found her face and he wiped the tears away. Claire smiled at him gratefully.

"You've got a nice smile,' he said absent-mindedly. Claire blushed and Will mentally slapped himself.

"Thanks. _You're _a really nice person," she replied which made Will smiled slightly. She tried to pick up some of the freshly chopped kindling but Will stopped her and picked it all up himself. He wouldn't let her take any.

"It's heavy," he told her. Claire raised her eyebrows. He didn't want her to hurt herself. But she didn't feel like arguing so she let him carry it and they walked back to the camp.

"Ah! There you are! Oh good you brought a lot," said Much, happily taking the wood from him.

"Has Djaq come back yet?" asked Will.

"I'm here," answered the Saracen. She came over to them looking slightly puzzled.

"Have you got any kind of cream or something that treats cuts, bruises and burns?"

Djaq nodded, now looking slightly suspicious. Claire rolled up her sleeves and Djaq gasped in horror.

"Who?" she demanded furiously, examining her wounds.

"Some of these might leave a permanent scar. Who did these Claire?"

"My parents," she muttered. Djaq imitated Will's appalled expression.

"I have something for them. Sit down," she commanded and she disappeared into her hut for a few minutes. She came back and rubbed some kind of cream onto the broken skin which stung. Claire hissed slightly.

"This will help the bruising. I will have to sew up one of those cuts. It looks more like a stab wound to me. I can't believe anyone would do this to you!" Djaq muttered.

"That's what I thought when they first started taking their anger out on me. The shock wore off after a while," said Claire. Djaq stopped applying the cream and threaded her needle.

"This will hurt…" she said warningly. Claire shrugged and said she was used to pain but she grabbed Will's hand all the same. Will squeezed her hand, his heart suddenly thumping again. Her hand was quite a bit smaller than his, her fingers were delicate and her skin felt soft and smooth. He inwardly felt smug for some reason. Djaq pressed the needle to Claire's arm and she winced and held his hand tighter. Djaq sewed up the wound as gently as she could. She thought Claire was very brave. Djaq remembered sewing up Marian's wound and her crying out with pain with the slightest touch. Claire must be made of tougher stuff.

"This will need to be kept clean and covered up. Otherwise it will become infected," she said and wrapped a bandage around the stitching. Claire pulled her sleeve down.

"Thanks," she said just as Robin came bounding into view.

"Alright gang? Everyone here? Good! There's a carriage coming this way and it looks like it's loaded with the sheriff's money. So… who's up for taking it?" he asked cheerfully. Everyone was up for it and the gang started picking up their weapons.

"What can we offer you lot?" asked Much.

"A bay staff if that's alright," said Jacob and John handed him one.

"I can fight with a sword…" said Emma. This was true. She had also gone to fencing competitions with Claire.

"Alright good," said Robin, giving her a blade.

"What about you?" Allan asked Claire. Claire thought for a moment.

"Um… A bow and arrows?" she asked. Robin looked keenly at her.

"You shoot?" Will asked politely. Claire nodded.

"A little," she said modestly.

"Are you good?" asked Allan giving her a bow and a quiver of arrows.

"She's _fantastic!" _said Emma excitedly. "She always wins the archery competitions at home,"

Robin grinned at Claire. "Really? Well we might have to have our own little competition here sometime," he was clearly flirting with her which made Will glare and Jacob growl over protectively. Claire however shrugged and said she'd have to think about it.

"Master, she's only just got here and you're already getting competitive," complained Much. Robin ignored him.

"Well gang. Let's go catch that carriage!" he said and lead the way towards the road.

Claire watched as Robin lay on the floor, pretending to have an arrow in his eye. The carriage came up the dusty road, pulled by two horses. There were several people on horseback. One of the guards approached Robin's 'dead' body.

"Get rid of him!" ordered the blonde fierce looking woman. The guard bent over Robin.

"Just seeing if he's got a purse," he said. At that moment, Robin opened his eyes.

"I'll show you my purse if you show me yours…" he said ripping the leaves and dirt from his eye. The outlaws, Claire, Emma and Jacob pounced. Soon they were surrounded.

"This is an ambush!" shouted Robin.

"You don't say?" said the woman sarcastically.

"Here's how it goes…"

"There are poor people going hungry…"

"So tell us what you've got…"

"And be honest with us…"

"And we'll take one tenth…"

"So the poor can eat,"

"Lie…

"Or resist…"  
"And we take all!"

"Nice opening speech," muttered Jacob, his staff held defensively in front of him.

"Thanks," said Much.

"So what's it gonna be then?" asked Robin. The woman sneered.

"You really think you can take on us? That one looks like a weakling if you ask me!" she said nodding towards Claire. There was a sudden gasp from Emma and Jacob.

"Oooo…" said Emma her eyes sparklingly.

"Fatal error…" whispered Jacob as Claire narrowed her eyes dangerously.

"Well I didn't ask you," she growled at the woman who raised her eyebrows.

"She gives such good evils," Emma whispered to Jacob who nodded in agreement. Claire pulled the bow back and fired an arrow towards the woman. It hit her target: the woman's hair band! Her long blonde hair fell out of it's perfect bun. This did seem to startle the woman slightly.

"Nice shot!" said the whole gang. The woman glared.

"Kill them!" she spat and her guards charged at the outlaws. It was an energetic but blood thirsty fight! Djaq stabbed repeatedly at the guards while John defended her from behind whacking them unconscious with his staff. Emma and Jacob were in a similar position except Jacob seemed to be trying to shield Emma from the guard's blades and was attempting to do all the fighting himself. Claire threw Robin his sword and quickly fitted another arrow into her bow. Allan was in locked combat with two guards and was holding his own but didn't see a third appear behind him. Claire fired her arrow and it hit the guard in his stomach. He groaned and fell down.

"Thanks!" shouted Allan not taking his eyes off the battling guards.

"No problem!" she cried back. She fired more arrows, making all her targets fall to the ground where they lay quite lifeless. She didn't just use the bow for firing arrows. If a guard came too close, she'd use it almost as a whip, slapping them hard around their faces and bodies. There was a sudden movement behind her which made her jump out of her skin. Claire wheeled around and saw Will hacking at a guard with his axe that was trying to attack Claire from behind. The guard fell defeated and Will looked at her, grinning. She grinned back but before she could thank him, a hand wrapped itself around her and a knife was pressed to her throat. The woman had got tired of watching her pathetic guards be beaten to a pulp and had decided to take action.

"Stop!" she hissed and everyone froze. Will and Jacob looked murderous.

"You let us go and I might let your little girlfriend live," she said to Will. Jacob started to move forward but Emma stopped him looking rather scared. Will threw one of his axes at them. It missed Claire and only _just_ missed Blondie but it startled her so much that she let go of Claire, who immediately turned and kicked her. While she was down Claire grabbed her hand and pulled her ring off. It looked like an eagle with a small gem in the middle. She snarled and leapt back onto her horse and rode away. Claire pocketed the ring as she watched her ride away. The gang began helping themselves to the treasure. Will approached Claire.

"Are you alright?" he asked her. Claire beamed at him.

"Never better actually! Thanks for stopping her," she said, her velvet voice full of happiness. Will blushed and shuffled his feet.

"It was nothing really. I – err… just didn't want you to get hurt. You've already been beaten enough!" he said. Claire smile widened.

"My hero!" she said. Will couldn't tell if she was being serious or not. He just smiled back at her before walking to the carriage and helping gather up the gold. Emma bounded up to her.

"What a day!" she exclaimed to her friend. Claire nodded.

"We get thrown into another time and we've just helped Robin Hood and his gang rob the Sheriff's money!" she said. Emma laughed. Soon the gang had finished nicking the coins.

"Right gang! Time to disappear!" shouted Robin leading the way.

"Everybody run now!" Emma said to Claire and they both sprinted after him.

Later that day, the gang sat about the fire still thrilled with their success at the robbery. Some of them were acting out their favourite parts.

"Claire is lethal with a bow and arrow! That was amazing when she shot that woman's hair!"

"I could have done that!"

"It wasn't you she insulted,"

"Not being funny but I reckon there were three guards having a go at me,"

"You hardly let me do any fighting Jacob!"

"I think we are lucky. None of us were harmed,"

"I liked it when Will threw the axe to make her let go of Claire! Did you see the look on her face?"

Claire frowned. She was sitting next to Will again by the fire.

"I didn't like that part. When she grabbed you like that," said Will quietly enough so only Claire could hear. "You looked really scared. And if she was with the Sheriff then she probably would have cut your throat!" Claire shivered at the thought but she gave Will a glowing look.

"That's why I'm grateful you stopped her Will. You're so kind," she said. Will blushed and looked away too embarrassed to look her in the eye. 'He's cute when he blushes,' thought Claire, now looking more closely at him. She hadn't actually noticed how handsome he was with his untidy black hair and deep dark eyes. You could just get lost in those eyes. With difficulty she turned her attention back to the gang.

"Hey! Where's Robin?" she asked suddenly. Robin wasn't sitting with them. However the gang looked nonplussed.

"He always disappears every now and again. He probably went to see Marian," said Djaq shrugging her shoulders.

"Oh! All right just wondered," Claire said. She faced Will again.

"When are we going to give this money to the poor?" she asked him. Will shrugged.

"We'll most likely give out tomorrow or the day after," he said but he looked like he'd rather have given it all out at once. Claire thought it best not to press the matter.

It was getting fairly dark and it looked like a storm was approaching. Claire could hear the thunder. It was getting really cold even with a fire. She hoped Robin would be back later. She needed to show him the ring he took from the lady earlier. She shivered as the cold wind whistled. She breathed on her hands, trying to warm them. The others were feeling the cold too. They were pulling their clothes tighter around themselves or moving closer to the fire. A blanket was wrapped around her shoulders by Will. "Don't get cold," he said, making her smile. On the other side of the fire Allan, Emma, Jacob and Much seemed to be in some kind of argument.

"Much that joke _wasn't _funny,"

"Are you sure? That was very amusing when someone told me,"

"Then whoever told you has done you in," said Allan. Emma caught Claire's eye.

"Claire, you tell a joke. You have really good ones," she said eagerly. Everyone leaned in slightly, all curious. Claire sighed.

"Fine. Umm… Three old ladies die and go up to heaven. At the gate a voice says 'you may go through heaven but you mustn't tread on any ducks.' So the old ladies walk through heaven trying to be careful because there are ducks all over the place but the first old lady accidentally treads on a duck and all of a sudden she finds herself married to the ugliest man you could ever imagine. Now the other two old ladies are really scared so they walked even more carefully but the second old lady treads on a duck and she to is married to an equally ugly man. The third old lady is now so scared she doesn't move but then all of a sudden, she's married to a really handsome, gorgeous man. She says 'Hang on what happened there?' and the man says 'I don't know about you but I trod on a duck!" Everyone laughed loudly, even John.

"What's so funny?" asked a voice behind them. Robin had come back. "Master! You're back!" said Much. "How much chicken do you want?" Allan and Will rolled their eyes.

"Are you sure it's not squirrel? Haven't seen any lately," asked Will. Claire giggled. Much glared at Will.

"Please do not make me look bad in front of her of all people," he said. Will raised his eyebrows.

"Oh so you admit it then?" he asked. Claire giggled harder as Much made inaudible noises in protest. Jacob smiled widely.

"What's that Much? I didn't catch that,"

"Never mind," said Much, admitting defeat. For some reason, Will felt inwardly smug. He could make Claire laugh! He opened his mouth to say something to her but she stood up and faced Robin.

"Can I show you something?" she asked. Robin looked faintly surprised. "You may," he said as she put her hand in her pocket. He winked at Will, who glared back. Claire pulled out the ring.

"I took this off the woman we robbed earlier. It looks like an insignia. I don't know if it means anything to you," she said, handing him the ring. He held it up looking horrified.

"This is the Sheriff's insignia! She must be right in his inner circle. The Sheriff must be up to something if his followers are gathering," said Robin. The outlaws all looked uneasy and Claire bit her lip.

"Thanks for showing me this Claire. We'll go to Nottingham tomorrow and have a poke around," he said tucking the ring in his pocket.

"Can't we go now?" she asked hopefully. Robin shook his head. "It's too late and anyway it looks like there's going to be a storm tonight," Claire shrugged and sat back down accepting the 'chicken' from Much. When she finished, she stretched and leant against a tree and closed her eyes, listening to the talk around her. She didn't realise she was dozing off until Emma prodded her in the forehead and her eyelids flickered open. Emma grinned.

"Tired?" she asked. Claire nodded. She looked around and saw that John, Allan and Djaq had disappeared into their huts.

"You can share with one of us if you like. It'll be too cold to sleep outside," said Robin.

"That's kind of you but I don't want to take up anyone's personal space," she said. Jacob yawned.

"Well I would. I'm exhausted. Been up since five in the morning," he said. Claire sighed at her brother's rudeness.

"I don't mind doubling up," said Much. "You can share with me Emma," he said. Emma flushed a bit.

"Oh! Okay thanks!" she said and went into his hut. Claire felt a little embarrassed.

"Can I share with you, Will?' she asked politely. Will felt his heart do a now familiar pounding in his chest. He nodded.

"Mine's…the one on the right," he managed to gasp out. She got up and disappeared. Robin went into his hut, leaving Jacob and Will facing each other. Jacob was glaring at Will.

"If I hear anything indecent coming from your room then I will personally skin you alive," he threatened. Will's eyebrows disappeared into his untidy hair and he turned his back on Jacob. He went inside and found that Claire was already curled up, fast asleep. He lay carefully down, trying not to wake her, and looked at her sleeping form. She looked so peaceful. He smiled and turned over and soon fell into a deep sleep.

_**Oblivion **_

_**Jacob, Emma and Claire**_

_The enemy arrives_

_Escape into the night_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run now_

_Break into another time_

_This enemy of mine_

_Divinity defines_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run_

_Under the burning sun_

_I take a look around_

_Imagine if this all came down_

_I'm waiting for the day to come_

_Come with us to the right_

_Join in the fight_

Everybody run now

_Everybody run now_

_Break into another time_

_Unity divides_

_Division will unite_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run now_

_Everybody run_

_Under the burning sun_

_I take a look around_

_Imagine if this all came down_

_I'm waiting for the day to come_

_Under the burning sun_

_I take a look around_

_Imagine if this all came down_

_America it's all so beautiful_

_Until it comes away_

_Under the burning sun I take a look around_

_Imagine if this all came down_

_Under the burning sun I take a look around_

_Imagine if this all came down_

_Under the burning sun I take a look around_

_Imagine if this all came_

**Okay that's Chapter 1. Please go on to chapter 2 after you've submitted your review.**

**I really hoped you liked it!!**

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	2. Crushcrushcrush

**Ok chapter 2 here. Read and review. Again please be nice.**

**Crushcrushcrush**

Claire woke up the next day, wondering where she was for a second. Then she remembered. Somehow she was with Robin and his gang and she'd so far escaped her parents. She looked over and saw Will sleeping next to her. She blushed. They were a little close. She got up and went out. Jacob and Emma were already up.

"You alright?" she asked them. Emma nodded.

"At the moment," Jacob said. "I didn't hear anything coming from you and Will last night," Claire was affronted.

"I hardly know Will and you're already panicking whether we're together or not!" she said angrily.  
"Give her a break Jacob. Claire doesn't know any other boys. This could be her chance," said Emma. Claire beamed at her.

"Will really seems to like you," Emma continued. Claire blushed.

"He hardly knows me," she muttered. Emma grinned.

"He couldn't take his eyes off you"

Before either could reply, the others began emerging from their sleeping quarters.

"What were you talking about?" asked Djaq brightly.

"Oh nothing!" they said in perfect unison.

"Claire I need to change your bandages again today. Just so the wound stays clean," she said.

"Okay," said Claire. Djaq took off the bandage and examined the stitching. She frowned.

"Is it bad?" Claire asked. Djaq shook her head uncertainly.

"I will need clean it again. It's not as good as I hoped it would be but it will get better. I won't put a bandage on it just yet. The fresh air might help it," she said. Claire was satisfied by this. Djaq knew what she was doing.

"Would you like rabbit or venison Claire?" Much asked.

"I'm not hungry Much, thanks," she said. Djaq finished cleaning the wound and Claire got up.

"Where are you going?" asked Jacob.

"For a walk. I'm a bit stiff," she said walking away.

"Will you be alright?"

"Yeah, yeah. I practically grew up in this forest," and she was gone…

Claire walked down the path she knew so well. It was exactly like it would be nearly a thousand years. Unless she was mistaken, the path she was on would lead her to Locksley Village. She couldn't wait to see what it looked like. She was soon at the edge of the forest and she could see the village. A handsome carriage drawn by horses was parked outside a large manor. Claire went up to it and studied it.

"Where is this carriage going?" she asked a passing peasant.

"That one is going to the castle. It's going to deliver some silver for the Sheriff's strong room," he told her. 'Interesting!' thought Claire. Robin would like to know about that!

A man came out of the house carrying a small chest and he got into the carriage. It began to move. Claire followed it. It wasn't very fast and it was hard to lose sight of. Sure enough it led her to the castle. There seemed to be some kind of market in the middle. She slipped through the crowd and the carriage stopped moving. Several guards went up to it and took out several money chests. Claire followed them up the stairs and into the castle. She kept her distance from them as they led her down two corridors, up a flight of steps and through several doors. Finally they stopped and entered a room with the chests. They came out and left. Claire went to the door and opened it. The room was large and spacious and a large chest was placed at the other end of the room. She took a step forward but an iron gate immediately blocked her path. She cursed. The room was obviously booby trapped. She backed out of the room and turned to leave. She went through the doors the guards led her through and down the stairs. She turned a corner and bumped into someone.

"Sorry!" she said bowing her head. The man had dark hair and eyes and was dressed in black leather. He looked down at her. He was a lot taller than her.

"What are you doing here?" he asked in a deep voice. Claire hesitated for one second.

"My mother works in the castle. She left her shawl and I was just delivering it. It's cold outside," she said, crossing her fingers behind her back. He seemed to believe her.

"This is a strange get up," he remarked, referring her outfit. She clenched her fist.

"It's all I've got," she said bluntly. He raised an eyebrow.

"You're very young. Why haven't I seen you before? Aren't you married? Eighteen and beautiful surely you must have suitors," he said. She gritted her teeth.

"You'd be surprised!" she said "Can I please leave?" she asked in case of personal questions. He stepped aside and said "I will have a carriage take you to Locksley. There are a lot of suspicious outlaws running around. Wouldn't want to harm your pretty neck," he said.

'WHAT THE HELL?!' thought Claire. He escorted her back outside and motioned for a carriage. The door opened and Claire started to climb in. He gave her his hand to help her up. She stared and he smirked.

"Maybe we'll see each other again sometime," he said. Claire looked away and rolled her eyes. She got in and the door shut. The carriage began to move and Claire looked out of the window. She watched the man until he was out of sight. She noticed a stranger who was shorter and bald come up to him and hit him around the face. Claire winced and sat back. The journey was very bumpy and uncomfortable. They reached Locksley and she got out. She waved at the driver and the carriage left. She couldn't believe what had just happened. She dashed through the village and through the woods until she reached the edge of the camp. The gang had obviously been out and had collected money from the tax collecting guards.

"Hello!" said Robin as soon as he noticed her. She waved.

"Where have you been?" asked Jacob.

"To the castle,"

"Really? We didn't see you come back. We could've all walked back,"  
"Err yeah… I didn't walk back,"

"What d'you mean?"

"Bumped into some bloke at the castle and he insisted on letting a carriage take me back,"

"What did he look like?"

"Err… Tall, dark, dressed in black,"

"THAT'S GISBORNE!" burst out Will, "Wait till I get my hands on him!"

"I didn't tell him anything about you guys. He thought I was a noble," Claire said guiltily.

"Why were you up in the castle in the first place?" asked Allan curiously.

"Oh! I meant to say! I followed a cart to the castle, packed with the Sheriff's money and it was delivered to his strong room. Real big chest, lots of money! Could feed the poor for maybe a year!" she said. Robin looked _very _interested.

"Really?" he said immediately picking up his bow. Claire held up her hand.

"I wouldn't get too hopeful if I were you Robin. The room's booby trapped. I tried to get in obviously," she said. Robin put down his bow looking extremely disappointed. Will however was grinning.

"Was the strong room on the second floor, third door to the left?" he asked. Claire nodded.

"I think I know someone who can help!" he said his eyes sparkling.

"Are you sure that a blind man can really help us?" Allan asked a while later. He, Will and Claire were waiting outside as Stephan's house was very small.

"He designed the strong room. He knows all the traps and everything," said Will. Allan began muttering to himself and stalked off.

"Is he always that sceptical?" Claire asked. Will nodded.

"Yeah. But you'll get used to it if you plan on staying," he said. He sounded hopeful. Claire smiled.

"You've seen what my parents have done to me. If being here means I'm safe from them, and then I'll stay for the rest of my life. Also I actually have friends," she said. Will fidgeted slightly at the 'friends' part.

"I didn't take up too much room last night did I?" she asked anxiously.

"No! Of course not. Actually I slept really well," he said. She smiled at him.

"How long have you been with Robin and the gang?" she asked.

"Umm… Almost a year," he said.

"You mean you've lived in the forest for nearly a year?" she asked and he nodded.

"That's impressive," she said. He knew what she meant. They'd managed to elude the Sheriff and his men for a year but Claire hadn't been able to last a day trying to get away from her parents.

"How's your arm?" he asked, trying to start a conversation.

"A bit sore. Djaq said it will get better soon," she said.

"Can't believe anyone would do that," he muttered darkly and Claire shrugged.

"How did you manage to sneak into the castle?" Will asked curiously.

"The security isn't very good. I practically walked in," she said. "Why?"

He shrugged.

"Whenever we try to sneak in, we get caught," Claire stifled a laugh and at that moment Robin and the others came back outside.

"Right we know what the traps are so we have a chance of getting past them. We can try to steal it this evening," said Robin. The others nodded.

"Not being funny but how are we gonna get into the castle in the first place? It'll be crawling with guards! We need some kind of cover," said Allan. He hated being the bringer of bad news but he did have a point. They couldn't just walk in. But Robin still grinned.

"Well the Sheriff is planning to make a final deposit before dividing the cash among the black knights. He's holding a fake casino and has invited a rich count to 'play'. The Sheriff has no intention of losing so he's going to cheat to get the money into the strong room. While the casino is being held, that's when we strike. We'll have on or two of us upstairs _with _the party making sure no one goes down from the great hall and to give the count the signal of when to lose all the money. Also that person will have to let us in through the courtyard," he said confidently. Everyone nodded. It probably would work.

"I'll let you in and stay with the party," offered Claire. She wanted to be useful. Jacob looked surprised but Robin smiled.

"Thanks Claire. Just out of interest why do you offer?" he asked.

"Well. The Sheriff, Gisborne and the guards know that you guys are outlaws and it'll be hard for you to stay hidden even in a crowd. None of them know about me yet so it'll be safer," she said.

"Sounds good," said Emma brightly.

"Okay and what if someone finds out that you're with us?" asked Allan. Will glared at him. Why did he have to ruin the idea? Claire answered for him.

"I'll hardly go blabbing about that I'm an outlaw will I? But if you're so worried about me then I guess you can do it," she said. She didn't speak unkindly. Allan couldn't think of a comeback so it let it pass. Robin clapped his hands.

"Alright let's do this!" he said.

Later…

Hours later that day, the gang was getting ready for the break in. Robin told Claire to go to see Marian about helping her dress up for the casino. Marian had given her a forest green, long sleeved dress and had clipped her long brown hair up.

"You look very pretty," said Marian. Claire smiled. She could see why Robin loved her. Marian was ever so kind and caring. They got into the carriage and rode to Nottingham castle. The dark haired man who Claire had met earlier greeted them at the steps.

"Lady Marian," he said, bowing to her.

"Sir Guy. May I introduce my friend Claire," she said and Claire smiled. Guy smirked.

"Such a small world," he said. Marian looked confused.

"We ran into each other earlier today. He kindly lent me a carriage that took me to Locksley," Claire said. Smiling was painful when you didn't mean it.

"I'll show you to the great hall," he said leading them up the steps. Marian immediately went to the Count Fredrick to tell him when he should start losing his money. Claire simply walked about the room examining the casino tables.

"I must say you look very pretty," said Guy who had silently followed her around.

"Thank you," she said. 'GO AWAY!' she thought angrily. If he kept following her then she wouldn't be able to let the others in. He didn't look like he was about to leave her alone just yet.

"Maybe you'd like to come visit me in Locksley. I'd like to get to know you better. Whenever it suits you will be fine with me," he said. Claire was amazed. He was so forward.

"GISBORNE!" shouted someone. It was the bald stranger she'd seen hit Guy across the face earlier.

"Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be where I told you to be?" he hissed. Guy looked extremely gloomy.

"He was just showing me around, my lord. I've never been in this part of the castle," said Claire, hoping to get Guy off the hook. He glared at her.

"Well I'll have you know missy, that we have servants to do that. Gisborne is my right hand man and it is not your place to distract him from his orders," he snapped. Guy glared at the back of his head. How could he be so rude to her? But Claire simply said sorry and that she wouldn't do it again and disappeared into the crowd.

"What did I tell you about women Gisborne? First that Annie girl, then Marian and now her. Women will be the death of you," said the Sheriff unaware that Claire could still hear them. She smiled to herself and walked to the edge of the crowd, waiting for Marian's signal. She was standing with the count at the main games table. She looked over at Claire and nodded. Claire quickly slipped through the door and down the corridor which led to the courtyard. She reached the door, looked over her shoulder to check no one was following and opened it. She hurried to the other side and pried a brick away from the wall and Little John slide out. He got out and reached in, pulling Much out who was followed by Will, Allan then Robin, Djaq and Jacob. Will glanced at her and then did a double take. He was glad it was fairly dark because he blushed bright red. Claire tilted her head to one side.

"What?" she asked him.

"Nothing," he said a little too quickly. Jacob sniggered behind him.

"Right now we're in let's go for the prize," said Robin leading the way out of the courtyard. Will and Claire were the last ones out. They stood staring at each other for a moment before Will looked at the floor and let Claire go out first. Claire went out feeling slightly disappointed.

The gang followed Robin up the stairs, down a corridor and through a door.

"This is it!" said Claire pointing to the door. Will went forward and was about to open the door when an arrow flew out of nowhere and hit his cloak. Claire nearly screamed and everyone jumped and Will looked as though he'd frozen. Luckily the arrow hadn't broken the skin because as Djaq examined the arrow tip, she told them that it was poisoned. Claire let out a sigh of relief. Will still looked a bit shaken.

"Are you alright?" Claire asked him quietly. He nodded. He could see the concern in her eyes. It must have given her quite a fright.

"Claire. Go upstairs and give Marian the signal," said Robin. When he saw the doubt on her face he said:

"We'll be fine. Seriously. Just meet us outside the castle after the party and we'll get back alright," Claire nodded and hurried back to the Great Hall.

Claire slid through the door and joined the crowd looking for Marian. She spotted her standing with Count Fredrick. She caught Marian's eye and nodded. Marian whispered to Fredrick. He nodded showing that he understood and began playing. Claire felt so nervous. What if Robin didn't survive the traps? What if they were caught? What if the Sheriff knew what they were up to and was just using this as bait so he could capture them? What if, what if?

"Oh there you are?" said a voice behind her. She jumped and wheeled around. It was Guy.

"Guy! You startled me," she said.

"I'm sorry," he said. He was half- smiling. "I was looking for you. The Sheriff has only just let me off duty," he said.

"He must trust you a lot," she remarked. He nodded.

"He thinks Robin Hood is going to try to steal from one of his strong rooms. He has tightened the security," he said. Claire's heart almost leapt to her throat. He _knew_. Lucky Claire was a good actress. She managed to force herself look surprised. He noticed her expression.

"You don't need to worry. We won't let him or his outlaws get to you or anyone," he assured her. She nodded and smiled at him. A pink tinge crept across his face. 'It was cute but not as cute as Will's dark flush' thought Claire. He offered her his arm and she took it. He walked her over to the casino table. They were in the middle of the game.

"I don't understand what's happening? Who's winning or losing?" she whispered to him.

"The Count is doing very well but if he throws less than what the opposition throws, he'll lose everything," Guy told her.

'And then the money will go down the chute and Robin will steal it all back!' thought Claire. She watched as Fredrick threw the loaded dice. He got two ones. There was a groan from the crowd and Fredrick faked a look of disappointment.

"Lady Marian. You have brought me nothing but bad luck. Auf Wiedersen!" He said and turned his back on her. Marian pretended to look hurt. Claire had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling. Guy was wearing a small smirk. Claire knew what he was thinking. He was thinking 'now we have all his money' He noticed Claire staring at him and he smiled. 'Why does this have to happen to me? 'Thought Claire. She'd barely been it 1192 for five minutes and she was already in a love triangle!

"So it's all over now?" she asked. He nodded.

"Too bad for the Count," he said. "He's lost everything,"

"Aw. Poor thing," said Claire playing along. Guy chuckled.

"Where are you staying?" he asked. Claire hadn't been expecting this.

"W- why do you ask?" she stuttered.

"Well some of the guests are staying in the castle or in other houses in the village. Do you live near the castle or are you staying somewhere else?" he asked. Claire knew what he was getting at so quickly made something up.

"Yes I am staying with Lady Marian. She a good friend of mine," she didn't lie. Marian was lovely. He seemed satisfied with her answer but she couldn't help but notice that he looked slightly disappointed.

She looked out the window. It was very dark and looked like rain might be approaching. And there was no sign that Robin had got past the traps or not. She was quite worried now. Her worry must have shown on her face because Guy said:

"I can escort you home if you wish," he said. He sounded hopeful.

"No thank you. I'll be fine," she said and walked off to join Marian.

"Any news?" Marian whispered. Claire shook her head.

"I don't want to think about what might've happened if they haven't made it!" said Claire in an oddly high pitched voice. Marian squeezed her hand.

"We'll find out in a moment. We have to take Fredrick to the carriage so he can get away," she said. She glanced around quickly and said.

"Guy seems to have taken quite a liking to you," she remarked. Claire scowled.

"If the opportunity ever arouses then can you please tell him that I'm not interested in him," she asked. Marian smiled and almost giggled.

"But he will ask why and then what will I tell him?" she asked. Claire opened her mouth but no words came out. She hadn't thought of that. What would be her reason? She cast her mind around looking for an excuse and it landed on Will.

"That there's someone else," she said firmly. Marian raised an eyebrow.

"Is there?" she asked. Claire felt a blush begin to form and she nodded her head. They stood there for a moment waiting for something to give them any sign that Robin had got out. And sure enough…

"GUARDS!!!" the Sheriff roared making both of them jump. Guy cursed and glanced at Claire, her face as white as paper.

"I'll be back," he mouthed at her and sprinted off. Claire grabbed Marian's arm.

"I think that's our cue to leave," she said. Marian nodded and they both hurried out of the Great Hall. They came to the gates where luckily the Prince and the gang were waiting.

"You made it!" Claire cried joyfully, hugging Will. Will stiffened. It was like hugging a post. He only relaxed when she let go of him. Robin glared.

"It was me who got past the traps," he said indignantly.

"No time for arguing, GO!" said Marian. The Prince bowed to Marian and leapt into a carriage which was loaded with all the money. Allan was sitting at the front with Djaq getting ready to steer the horses. Will clambered onto the back and pulled Claire up with him. To his dismay Robin came up next to her. She waved to Marian and the carriage pulled them away from the castle.

"Meet any tall, dark strangers?" Robin asked obviously meaning Guy.

"Unfortunately," she said. Robin laughed at Will's scowl.

_**Paramore – Crushcrushcrush**_

_**Will , Guy & Claire**_

_I got a lot to say to you_

_Yeah, I got a lot to say_

_I noticed your eyes are always glued to me_

_Keeping them here_

_And it makes no sense at all_

_They taped over your mouth_

_Scribbled out the truth with their lies_

_You little spies_

_They taped over your mouth_

_Scribbled out the truth with their lies_

_You little spies_

_Crush. Crush. Crush._

_Crush, crush_

_(Two, three, four!)_

Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone

_Just the one two of us who's counting on_

_That never happens_

_I guess I'm dreaming again_

_Let's be more than this_

_If you want to play it like a game_

_Well, come on, come on, let's play_

_Cause I'd rather waste my life pretending_

_Than have to forget you for one whole minute_

_They taped over your mouth_

_Scribbled out the truth with their lies_

_You little spies_

_They taped over your mouth_

_Scribbled out the truth with their lies_

_You little spies_

_Crush. Crush. Crush._

_Crush, crush_

_(Two, three, four!)_

_Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone_

_Just the one two of us who's counting on_

_That never happens_

_I guess I'm dreaming again_

_Let's be more than this now_

_Rock and roll, baby_

_Don't you know that we're all alone now?_

_I need something to sing about_

_Rock and roll, honey_

_Don't you know, baby, we're all alone now?_

_I need something to sing about_

_Rock and roll, hey_

_Don't you know, baby, we're all alone now?_

_Give me something to sing about_

_Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone_

_Just the one two of us who's counting on_

_That never happens_

_I guess I'm dreaming again_

_Let's be more than. No, oh_

_Nothing compares to a quiet evening alone_

_Just the one two of us who's counting on_

_That never happens_

_I guess I'm dreaming again_

_Let's be more than_

_More than this_

**Thanks for reading. Please submit a review (a nice one) and chapter 3 will be up soon!**

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	3. I hope I live to regret this!

**Ok chapter 3 up! I'm quite nervous about this chapter so again please be nice with the reviews. This chapter is cut in half and the other half will be up soon (I've been busy with homework and stuff). **

**BTW very, very special thanks to Experimental Madness for giving me advice and tips for this chapter. I hope I've made Claire a bit more human for your liking. Ok read and please, please enjoy!**

**I hope I live to regret this!**

A few days later after the robbery, Claire, Jacob and Emma had really settled into the camp. Claire's wounds and broken heart had finally healed and they had become fully fledged outlaws! And they had the tags to prove it!

Also by and by Will's feelings for Claire were still growing stronger. Every time she gave him a certain smile that was only directed at him (and most of the time he was the only one who received her smiles), his heart started doing a drum roll against his ribs. She was so sweet although even he had to admit she was a bit rash sometimes.

One morning…

"Here you go!" said Much handing Allan and John a plate with meat and bread on. Claire was sitting by the edge of the camp, talking quietly to Will. Much came over with plates for Will and Claire.

"Squirrel again?" asked Will. Much glared at him.

"No it's chicken," he insisted.

"Its squirrel," said Will in a resolved tone. Claire smiled but accepted the plate. The gang began talking about not having salad and Claire tuned out. She gazed into the trees humming to herself.

'Where's Robin got to again?' she thought. She suddenly received a sharp poke in the ribs from Emma. She turned to glare at her.

"Yes?" she asked coldly.

"Away with the fairies?" she asked grinning.

"No I was just wondering where Robin is," she said stiffly.

"I'm here," said Robin's voice behind them. Robin had come back without any of them noticing. He was accompanied by a young boy who looked quite frightened.

"This is Daniel. His friends have been captured by Gisborne. They saw him testing out new armour. We need to take away his toys," he said. Everyone nodded and began getting their weapons ready. Daniel was staring at each of the outlaws. He was clearly a fan.

"Little John!... Will!...Allan A Dale! And you must be Djaq the Saracen!" he said eagerly. Allan waved and Djaq smiled.

"Wow!" Daniel said with awe. His eyes fell on Emma, Jacob and finally Claire.

"Sorry. I don't know your names," he said. Robin chuckled.

"They are new additions to our gang," said Robin. Jacob waved.

"I'm Jacob. Blondie's Emma and the pretty one is my sister Claire," he said jokingly earning himself a glare from Emma and a punch in the ribs from Claire.

"I thought you didn't let nobles into your gang," said Daniel obviously referring to Claire's forest green dress. Claire blushed and made a mental note to eventually give it back to Marian.

"I'm not a noble," she muttered coldly. 'I'm no one' she thought. She silently picked up her bow and quiver. There was a very awkward silence.

"Right let's go! Daniel, lead the way," said Robin.

Daniel led them to the road. No one was in sight.

"They've gone," he said blankly walking around slowly. Everyone looked around, searching for anything that might give them a hint to where they'd gone. Eventually Daniel found something on the ground. It looked like a tag.

"We play outlaws. I'm Robin Hood," he told Robin. Jacob sidled up to Claire.

"Are you alright?" he whispered. She nodded.

"I bet your thinking 'oh how can Guy do something like this?'" he said poorly mimicking her voice. She punched him in the arm. She felt nothing for Guy and yet Jake never stopped teasing her.

"Jakey, y'ain't funny. I couldn't care less about Guy," she said her voice as cold as ice. Jacob sneered at her.

"You don't care about a lot of things do you?" he asked. Claire's eyes flashed dangerously.

"I care about the gang and you and Emma," she replied icily. Jacob continued to look down his nose at her.

'I hate it when he looks at me like that! It reminds me of mum,' she thought. She could feel her anger rising. She only got angry when things reminded her of her parents.

'Jake better stop looking at me like that,' she thought. She suddenly raised her fists in front of her like a guard.

"What?" asked Jacob, his expression dropping?

"That's the look mum gives me when she's about to hit me," Claire muttered darkly.

"Oh! Sorry," he said, looking at his feet.

"Okay gang. We think we know where they've gone. Time for a rescue!" Robin called.

"Touché," said Jacob following him.

"Okay let's see. We've done a robbery, an ambush, delivering cash to poor so now it's time for a rescue mission,"

In the town

They were now in the town. Robin had sneaked off to spy on the Sheriff at the blacksmiths. The gang hid and waited for Robin's signal. Much was craning his neck trying to see if he could see anyone apart from the Sheriff inside.

"Gisborne is there too," he said. Claire began mouthing something that made Jacob shake with silent laughter. An arrow flew out of nowhere and _almost _hit Much's hand.

"That's the signal," said Will. They all ran forward nearer to the blacksmiths and quickly hid again.

"Will. With me," ordered John. Claire opened her mouth to protest. Cutting through the wall was risky enough but with the Sheriff nearby.

"But…" she began.

"I'll be fine. Really," he interrupted, trying to sound reassuring. Inside he felt quite touched that she was worried. Claire wasn't convinced but she let him go all the same. He and John disappeared behind the workshop. After a while, if you strained your ears over the blacksmith's hammering, you could hear some wood being sawn. Daniel looked rather frightened.

"Are you okay?" Claire whispered to him. He shrugged.

"I'm worried about Mark, Tom and Matthew," he said **(AUTHORS NOTE: I didn't know the names of his other friends so I made them up.)**

"We'll get them out. I promise. You can count on Robin," she said, patting his shoulder. He smiled gratefully at her.

"I don't like waiting," complained Much. Allan and Djaq rolled their eyes. "Especially behind a cow!" he continued.

"Moron!" muttered Jacob quietly so Much couldn't hear him.

"It's not good for my constitution," said Much. Daniel clearly couldn't take much more of his whining because he went:

"MUCH! SSHH!" Claire stifled a laugh, while Jacob barked with laughter. Allan and Djaq also laughed.

"You got told!" said Emma. "By an eleven year old!" Much did not look happy. He went back to waiting for Robin or Will. They'd been gone longer than they'd hoped.

"Bet you one of them's chained up," muttered Jacob darkly. At that very moment Will came dashing back with two boys who looked Daniel's age. Daniel looked overjoyed but his smile quickly faded.

"Hang on! Where's Mark?" he asked Will.

"Chained up. But John will get him out," he said.

"I knew it," said Jacob. Claire and Emma glared at him.

"You had to say something!" they hissed, drawing their weapons.

"Stay here!" Much said to the boys. They all nodded their heads looking scared. Much, Allan, Emma and Djaq sprinted off towards the blacksmiths brandishing their swords. Claire was about to go after them when Will stopped her.

"Can you stay and look after these three?" he asked cautiously.

"Why do I have to do it?" she asked quietly.

"Do what Will says, Claire," ordered Jacob and he disappeared too. Claire glared at his back before looking at Will again.

"Why are you worried?" she asked him. She could see it in his eyes.

"I don't want to see you get hurt," he said. He was so _serious! _Claire sighed and nodded. Will smiled gratefully at her and went off to the fight. Claire herded the boys out of sight and told them to keep down. If only she hadn't looked away for a moment. Daniel quickly slipped away into the shadows. He had to find Mark. He just had to. And he had to help Robin.

"Daniel!" shouted one of his friends making Claire look wildly around.

"No!" she shouted and sprinted after him. She nearly caught him but someone else did.

"Get off me!" Daniel shouted, hitting at Gisborne. Claire leapt at him trying to pull them apart, but Guy was a lot stronger and managed to push Claire away.

"Claire? What are you doing?" he said.

"Trying to take him back," she said coldly. "What are you going to do to him?"

"The Sheriff will decide his punishment," he said. Claire blanched.

"Why should you care?" asked Guy.

"He's a child. And what has he done to deserve a punishment?" she demanded.

"I caught him skulking about in the forest, looking at things he shouldn't have seen," said Gisborne darkly. They were soon matched in a glaring contest which could have gone on for a very long time. Luckily (for Claire) they were interrupted.

"GISBORNE!" called an angry voice. It was the Sheriff. Guy cursed quietly.

"I must go but I'm sure we'll see more of each other," he said. Claire smiled nastily and waited until he'd gone.

"Sorry!" she mouthed at Daniel who looked scared. She ran back to where she'd left Thomas and Matthew.

"Is Daniel alright?" Matthew asked worriedly. Claire slumped against the wall miserably. They both ran up to her worried she might faint.

"No!" she moaned. They both stared at her. "Gisborne got hold of him and you know what he's like! Some outlaw I am!" she said rather tearfully. The two boys looked anxiously at each other before one of them patted her knee. By the time the gang had got back, Claire was gently banging her head against the wall, despite Thomas and Matthew begging her to stop. Emma ran forward and pulled her away. The others were listening to Gisborne's announcement.

"People of Locksley! Let Robin Hood know this! We want our box and its contents back by morning! If not his little friend will be punished! His little friend will _**die**_!" he shouted angrily. Claire hit herself again.

"How could I have been _so _naïve about Gisborne?" she whined.

"Robin. We get the boy _now,"_ said John. Robin shook his head.

"No. We stop and we think," he said. He looked very worried.

"We gotta give him what he wants," said Mark. Everyone looked at each other. Claire looked ashamed of herself. Will approached her.

"Are you alright?" he asked even though he knew she wasn't. She shook her head.

"Robin," she called. Robin looked at her anxiously.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"I'm so sorry. I looked away for a moment and I let Daniel run off. I tried to get him back but Gisborne got there first," she said. Now they understood the head banging. Robin bit his lip.

"It's not your fault," he said eventually but Claire wouldn't take it.

"No it is. I let him run off," she replied feeling more miserable by the minute.

"Yeah but it's not like you chased him into Gisborne is it?" Will said firmly. Claire thought for a moment and shook her head.

"There you go," Robin said smiling which Claire returned weakly.

"Robin. Take a look at this metal," said Djaq who had pinched some of the armour. "It is the Maskers** (or something like it)** steel or something like it. A man wearing this will be invincible," she said to a gutted Robin.

"We can't let him make this stuff," said Will.

"That's why I took the stones," said Robin.

"Robin. We cannot give them back," said Djaq. The gang murmured in agreement.

"But we can't let Daniel die either," said Robin. Claire shook her head sadly. Will patted her shoulder but didn't realise he'd left it there until she blushed slightly and looked at him. He then noticed that her dress was an off the shoulders one and he immediately let go, his face burning. Emma laughed slightly at his face but Jacob glared. He wasn't going to let any guy flirt with her or make suggestive gestures towards her.

"Not being funny but shouldn't we get out of here?" said Allan. Coming back down to Earth, the gang took one last look at Daniel and left as quickly and as quietly as they could.

Back in the camp:

Claire and Jacob hung back while the gang were trying to find a way to get Daniel back and destroy the diamonds.

"You really think that putting them in a wooden box lined with pitch can really destroy them?" Jacob asked her. Claire folded her arms.

"If Will says it can then it'll work," she replied jerkily. Jacob wasn't sure if he liked Claire taking a liking to Will.

"How come you've settled in really quickly and Emma and I are still really shy?" he asked her. Claire thought for a moment and shrugged.

"I don't know. I kinda feel like I'm supposed to be here. Back at 'home' I always felt the odd one out somehow? Here I feel completely normal for once," she said. Jacob nodded to show he understood. He went back to talking about the pitch plan.

"It'll be risky to shoot the box with a flaming arrow. Okay I know Robin's aim is spectacular but they'll be out in the open with all the guards. Have you ever heard of a plan where _so _many things could go wrong?" he asked.

"You worry too much," said Will joining them. Jacob shot him a glare.

"Just saying…" he mumbled.

"We'll be fine Jakey. Seriously!" said Claire.

"Well _you'll_ be fine. You're not coming!" said Jacob. Claire's eyes flashed.

"Why not?!" she cried.

"Because I said so," he sniffed. Claire hated it when he was like this.

"Ok I know you want to look after me but if you think that mollycoddling me will work then you're wrong!" she shouted and she hit him on the arm and stomped off.

"That was unexpected," said Will. Jacob stared after her. He knew she had a tendency to be violent but…

"You shouldn't be so overprotective you know," said Will. The hidden message in that was 'If you're so protective of her, I'll never be able to get close to her!' Luckily Jacob didn't discover this.

"I can't risk losing her! After the fight we had with the sheriff's sister and she nearly got her throat slit I won't let her get hurt! And tomorrow when we go there, there will be guards everywhere and the chances of getting killed are high," he said. Will looked at him for a moment.

"I'll talk her round," he said and went off after Claire.

"She won't listen. You hardly know her!" said Jacob but Will waved him off.

"I know enough," he said.

"You may think she's an angel sent from heaven but she can be as stubborn as a donkey and let me tell you she has a temper more fiery than a jalapeno pepper," Jacob shouted as Will walked out of the camp. He didn't have to walk for long before he found her sitting on top of a large log. He came and sat next to her.

"Did Jacob ask you to talk me round?" she asked. Will nodded his head.

"Did he tell you how stubborn I can be? And that I've got a really bad temper sometimes?" she asked.

"Yeah,"

"Did he use his jalapeno pepper metaphor?"

"Yes he did,"

"That's so like him," she said coldly.

"He doesn't want to see you get hurt. And to be honest neither do I. That place will be teaming with guards and they'll be Gisborne and the Sheriff. He's just trying to watch out for you," said Will. Claire smiled slightly.

"Is that what he said?" she asked.

"No. He only said the first bit. The rest is all me," he said. They both blushed.

He soon realised that that was an appropriate thing to say when you're alone with the girl you like.

"Okay. I'll stay," she said giving in. Will smiled.

"Thanks," he said. Claire shrugged. They sat there for a moment not saying anything. During that time Will was admiring how beautiful she looked in the moonlight. But he did notice that she looked a bit sad.

'Could I comfort her in any way?' Will thought. He could hear a voice inside his head shouting 'Go on say it! Say that you love her! Say it! SAY IT!' Will suddenly couldn't find his voice. There was a lump in his throat that wouldn't go away. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a stick snapping loudly nearby which made both of them jump. There was a rustling sound which meant that someone was nearby.

"Who's there?" called Will. No one answered. They waited for a few moments in silence so they could hear. But there weren't any further noises.

"Let's get out of here," muttered Will grabbing Claire's hand and pulling her back to the camp. Claire glanced worriedly over her shoulder but no one was there.

'I could've sworn I heard someone,' she thought.

The Next Day:

Robin fired the flaming arrow towards the box and it easily hit its target. The box burst into flames announcing the experiment to be a success. Claire stood with the three boys who all clapped loudly when the flames erupted. She hadn't forgotten her promise to look after them. This time she wasn't going to let them out of her sight. Jacob was very sceptical that Will had managed to change Claire's mind about wanting to come and was convinced that she would show up.

"Right gang! Let's go!" Robin ordered. Jacob came up to Claire before he followed on.

"Now remember! If we aren't back within two hours, we've probably been captured," he said.

"That's horrid!" Claire replied indignantly, hitting him gently.

"Stop teasing her, Jacob," called Robin. Jacob had a feeling that Robin had said this in order to score points with Claire. Jacob muttered inaudibly and stalked off. While his back was turned, Will shot Claire a quick smile and Robin winked at her. She smiled at both of them and walked the boys back to the camp.

"How long do you reckon they'll be?" asked Thomas. Claire shuddered slightly.

"Hopefully more than two hours," she said.

About an hour and a half later Claire was starting to feel worried. There was a very high chance that they could be captured. There were all the guards, Guy and the Sheriff. The boys could sense her worry and were keeping well away from her. They were scared that if they said something she might lash out.

"That's it!" she suddenly burst out making them all jump.

"Wh-what?" asked Matthew anxiously. Claire got up and grabbed the bow Robin had lent her and a quiver of arrows.

"Didn't your brother tell you to stay with us?" asked Mark.

"Yeah but now I'm panicking and I'm going after them. Will you promise me that you'll stay here?" she asked them. The boys nodded quickly looking scared. Claire opened the door to the camp and walked out.

"YOU'D BETTER STAY IN THERE!" she shouted over her shoulder.

"We will!" the boys shouted back.

'I hope I live to regret this,' Claire thought as she sprinted away through the trees…

**Ok that's chapter 3 part one. Nice reviews please I'm quite sensitive.**

**Again thanks to Experimental Madness for the advice. I really hope you've enjoyed it the most.**

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	4. Unexpected Attack, Tears and the Promise

**Part 2 of chapter 3 up! Thank you to my lovely reviewers. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as the last one! **

**In this chapter we see the outcome of the fight and we'll also find out who was hiding in woods, stalking Will and Claire!!**

**Enjoy! And nice reviews again please!**

**Unexpected Attack, Tears and a Promise**

In the town…

"ROBIN!!" screamed Much as Gisborne threw Robin through the window of a peasant's house and hit the floor. This couldn't have turned out worse.

"How could the Sheriff have guessed the pitch plan?" asked Emma not taking her eyes off the guards.

"I don't know," said Djaq not noticing how Allan fidgeted slightly.

"I knew something would go wrong! You can't get something to go right without a catch," said Jacob who looked half worried and half fed up.

"This is no time for your negativity!" snapped a voice behind them which made Jacob and the rest of the gang jump out of their skins.

"Claire! What are you doing here?" squealed Emma. Claire ignored her as she watched the fight her mouth hanging open. It was almost like watching her father beat her when he was drunk. It was very frightening. The fight came closer to them and Jacob immediately tried to pull Claire behind him but she slapped his hands away.

"Claire you shouldn't be here!" said Will looking from Claire to the archers.

"Well I couldn't sit in the camp, wondering whether you guys were alright or not!" she insisted almost sounding hysterical.

"Robin told you to stay at the camp with the others! I can't _believe_ you disobeyed him!" snapped Much, who was glaring quite fiercely at her.

"Robin wasn't the one who told me to stay behind _actually_," she shot back.

"Alright so you disobeyed _me _then!!" snapped Jacob.

"_You're _not my master," she hissed.

Someone whistled loudly and Claire spotted Marian standing by the Sheriff, who was surrounded by guards. She beckoned Claire to come near her. Nimbly avoiding the fighting men and the archers, Claire was soon at Marian's elbow.

"Pretend that Daniel is your little brother. The guards will release him to you. Take him back to the camp," Marian hissed in her ear.

"But-"said Claire.

"He'll be safer with you!" insisted Marian.

"Okay but what are you gonna do?" asked Claire half curious and half anxious.

"I've just got to help get the black diamonds back. Now take Daniel!" Claire nodded and tapped Daniel on his shoulder. As he looked up at her, she pulled him into a hug which knocked the air out of him.

"Oh my sweet, innocent brother! You scared me so much!" she cried pretending to sound tearful. Daniel and the guard holding onto him looked surprised and confused.

"Play along," Claire whispered in Daniel's ear so he understood her sudden burst of affection.

"Is this your sister young man?" asked the guard curiously. Daniel nodded vigorously and hugged Claire back in order to make it more convincing. The guard shrugged and let Daniel go off with Claire.

"Those guards aren't paid to be smart, are they?" Claire muttered as soon as they were out of earshot and Daniel sniggered.

"Listen. I'm really sorry that I let you get caught. I feel so bad," she said, squeezing his shoulder. Daniel patted her hand and smiled.

"I was the one who ran off. I wanted to find Mark. Is he alright by the way?" he asked anxiously.

"He's fine. All your friends are fine. They're safe in the camp where I'm supposed to be looking after them but I ran off because I was so worried about you and the gang," she muttered the last part, immediately feeling guilty because she'd just realized that she'd broken her promise to Will.

"Look! Marian's pointing a dagger at the man who made the armour!" said Daniel, pointing.

"What?" exclaimed Claire. He was right. Marian had pressed her dagger to the black smiths back, clearly threatening to kill him.

"You're helping Hood?" demanded the Sheriff sound disbelieving.

"Quite the opposite! I am reminding you that Sir Guy is your most faithful servant!" she replied.

"Hang on! Have we missed something?" asked Claire scanning the area.

"Yeah. Robin managed to set Gisborne's armour on fire and now he says that he'll drown Gisborne in that barrel!" said Daniel. Claire spotted Robin standing in a large barrel and forcing Gisborne under the water. As Robin let him come up for air, Gisborne shouted out to the Sheriff, begging him to spare his life.

"Let him die!" snapped the Sheriff but Marian pressed the knife more into the blacksmith.

"If you let him die, then I will kill this man. Without him, can you really make the armour?" said Marian, with an air of triumph. The Sheriff growled, looking back from Robin and Gisborne to Marian and the blacksmith. Eventually, he gave in and threw the bag containing the rocks towards the gang. Robin let go of Gisborne and climbed out of the barrel. Gisborne scrambled out and hurried away to remove the burnt, wet armour. As he passed them he said:

"Happy now? You got him back and he's unharmed," Claire smirked at him.

"Very happy," she said coolly. He glared at her and into her eyes. She intensified her gaze, intending to intimidate him and make him feel like she could see right through him. He fidgeted slightly under her glare.

"I am unharmed," he muttered. Claire stifled a laugh.

"No you're not! You're cold, wet and humiliated and feel like the world's come to an end because you were defeated by Robin Hood. I can read you like a book Guy of Gisborne!" she exclaimed. She placed her hands on Daniel's shoulders and steered him away from Gisborne. As she turned, she could've sworn she heard Gisborne let out a long sigh before he stomped off to get out of his armour. Claire immediately dismissed this, tossed her hair and marched away with Daniel back to the gang. They were all praising Robin about beating Gisborne, even while he was wearing indestructible armour. An excited Daniel ran up to Robin and told him that he was his hero and that he was even better than he'd thought. Robin and the gang laughed but Claire hung back. She still felt guilty. Yesterday, she'd let Daniel run straight into danger. Today, she'd left three little boys, incapable of defending themselves, alone in the woods, along with disobeying Jacob, letting the gang down and breaking her promise to Will. She hung her head and looked ashamed while the gang celebrated their leader's success.

"Right gang! Let's go home!" said Robin cheerfully…

Back in the camp.

"A toast!" declared Much, pouring out mugs of ale and handing them out to everyone. Robin smiled at Daniel and his friends. He was holding a bag in his hand, which contained newly made tags that he was going to give the boys.

"Good job lads!" he said, patting Daniel's shoulder. All the boys were looking curiously at the bag. As Robin pulled out the tags, Daniel's eyes widened with excitement.

"You are now honorary members of our gang!" said Robin, giving out the tags. "Whenever you need us, you can call on us,"

"And whenever you need _us_," said Daniel, putting the tag around his neck and grinning up at Robin. "You can call on us,"

"WE ARE ROBIN HOOD!" chorused the gang, in almost perfect unison, raising their mugs.

"WE ARE ROBIN HOOD!" replied the boys. They all cheered and drank their ale. Emma and Djaq all giggled as Jacob drank his ale all in one go and then discovered far too late that he didn't really like it. He turned away from the crowd, gagging and choking. Two of the boys ran up to Claire, who was standing outside the party. They her hugged tightly around the middle, knocking the air out of her.

"Can't….breath!" she gasped. They both laughed but let go all the same. Claire couldn't believe they really liked her, even when she'd just left them on their own.

"Come and join in! Everything turned out alright. Daniel's safe, Robin destroyed the black diamonds and I heard that the black smith has left the Sheriff!" they said, dancing around her.

"All we need now is for Much to cook us something that isn't squirrel or rat!" said Claire, cheekily unable to stop herself.

"OI!" shouted Much but he couldn't help but laugh, talk and drink along with everyone else…

_Later that night…_

Everyone bustled around the camp, tidying up mugs of ale and plates of food. Much threw some logs onto the ground and created a warm fire. The party had finished and the boys had gone home.

"Where's Claire?" asked Will, looking hopefully around the camp. He'd noticed how secluded she'd been during the celebration and had figured that she was feeling bad about breaking her promise.

"She went to take the boys to their homes. It's too dark for them to go alone," said Djaq.

"She seemed happy to leave them alone earlier," Much remarked haughtily. Will glared at him and Robin let out an exasperated sigh.

"Much, can't you see that Claire's being hard enough on herself? I know you feel angry about what she did but she feels terrible and wants to make up for it. I know she's sorry. Claire doesn't need you turning your nose up at her! She deserves a second chance" Robin scolded.

"Not being funny but when my brother disobeyed you, you went mad and kicked him out of the gang!" said Allan, almost indignantly.

"That's because your brother stole some of our things and nearly robbed Marian. Claire didn't jeopardise the mission or put us in danger, she just wanted to know that we were alright!" Will retorted angrily.

"And besides your brother had already had _his _second chance and he messed it up," added Robin.

"Still, she ought to listen to her instructions when we give them. It'll only lead to trouble otherwise," said Much.

"Claire isn't a servant and she doesn't take orders! Especially from the likes of you! Claire's been nothing but nice to you and here you are making it seem like she's done something terrible. She didn't even start picking a fight nor do anything dangerous!" snapped Jacob. The door to the camp slammed loudly, making everyone jump.

"I think she heard us," said Emma slowly, staring at the door.

"Nice going," said Jacob, coldly glaring at Much. Will started for the door but Emma pulled him back.

"Give her a moment," she said softly. Will sighed but sat down all the same. It was pitch black out and he didn't want Claire to be alone in the dark.

"She can't stay out long though," muttered Jacob.

"We'll go get her in a moment. She'll come round. She always does," replied Emma. This comment satisfied Will and he calmly leant against a tree, quietly listening to the gang talk, occasionally shooting a fierce look at Much who was still muttering about Claire. Several minutes passed before he actually said something out loud.

"How much time does she need?" he demanded.

"Much, you've just hurt her feelings and you expect her to walk right in and be alright about it?" challenged Jacob.

"Will you two just shut it?" snapped Allan. "And can someone let Will go find Claire before he explodes?" he added earning himself a glare from the carpenter.

"Well, she's been gone long enough. I think she'll be ok. We can go get her now," said Emma. Before anyone said or did anything else, the camp and forest shook from a loud, piercing, terrible scream, which made Will's blood turn to ice. He was through the door and out of the camp in seconds, closely followed by Jacob and the others. They ran through the trees towards the place where the scream came from. They all burst into a clearing where they found Claire.

A tall, bulky, hooded figure was holding her against a tree and was strangling her. Claire was weakly slapping at the figures arms and kicking at his legs but the figure was a lot bigger and a hell of a lot stronger. Jacob roared and leapt at the pair and began hitting at the figure, tooth and nail. Will ran forward to help and managed to pull Claire away from the stranger. Unfortunately Jacob wasn't tough enough to take on him alone. The man hit him around the head, causing Jacob to let go of him and he sprinted away into the black forest..

"AFTER HIM!!" bellowed Robin pulling Jacob to his feet. Everyone except Will and Emma sprinted after Claire's attacker, shouting and brandishing their weapons. Emma was fussing over Claire, who sat completely frozen on the forest floor. She wouldn't let Emma or Will help her up or check if she'd been badly injured.

"I'm fine Emma," said Claire jerkily, forcing herself to her feet.

"You can't be! That man just assaulted you!" Emma replied incredulously, trying to pull up Claire's sleeves to see if Claire's cuts had opened. Claire shook off Emma and furiously pulled her sleeves back down.

"Only trying to help…" muttered Emma.

"I know but I'm fine! Really! Just a bit shaken but apart from that I'm okay," Claire insisted. She quickly glanced at Will, who'd raised his eyebrows, showing that he obviously didn't believe her.

"We should go back to the camp and wait for the others…" said Emma quietly. They all trudged back inside the camp where Claire immediately went and sat down on her bed and didn't say anything to the other two.

"I'll go and do look out," Emma mumbled. She was hurt that she couldn't help Claire in any way. She wandered off hanging her head and leaving Will alone with Claire. He studied her carefully. He could tell she was hurt and scared. He could just tell by looking at her. She was pale and shaking slightly, unaware that he was watching.

Will went and sat next to Claire on her bed. She opened her mouth to say something but Will held up his hand, silencing her.

"You're not alright are you? I can see that you're scared," he said firmly. Claire stared at him uncertainly. Her eyes seemed to be asking him a question.

"It's okay to be scared…" he stated which seemed to answer her unasked question. She nodded once and without warning, she buried her face in her hands and burst into tears. Will wrapped his arms around her and let her cry onto his shoulder, stroking her hair. Her body shook with her sobs and Will could feel hot tears begin to seep through his shirt. He could hear the voice inside his head start to try to persuade Will to reveal his feelings but now wasn't the moment. It took Claire quite a while to calm down but eventually her sobs subsided and she wiped her eyes.

"Sorry," she muttered thickly.

"Don't be. You were scared and there's nothing wrong with crying," said Will. To his surprise Claire smiled.

"No. I mean 'I'm sorry I put a wet patch on your shoulder,'" she said, smiling through her tears.

"Oh. It'll dry," he said simply and wiped the rest of her tears away. "Why were you so afraid of crying?" he asked her curiously. She hung her head and quietly explained that whenever her parents hit her or shouted at her, if she cried they wouldn't stop and they'd make it a lot worse for her.

"So you forced yourself not to cry?" asked Will and she nodded. He pulled her into a comforting hug again which she gratefully returned quietly starting to cry again. Will made a silent promise in his head.

'No one will ever hurt you again. They'll have to go through me first. I'll never let your evil, twisted parents come near you ever again. I promise…'

**Awww…**

**Well what do you think? I had fun writing this but your reviews mean a lot (as long as they're nice and offer constructive advice). Thanks for reading you've been a wonderful audience and hopefully chapter 4 will be up soon too!**

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	5. Murder! And then kidnap!

**FINALLY A NEW CHAPTER! I am so sorry that it's been so long but I've been really busy and I keep putting it off and putting it off and so on :)**

**Anyway here it is and I hope that you'll enjoy it! Nice reviews please!**

**Murder! And then kidnap!**

Two weeks passed since Claire was attacked by the hooded stranger and among the gang it was almost like a competition between Will and Jacob on who could be more protective. After witnessing how much the attack had frightened Claire, Will was always the one who made sure that she never left the camp without a guard and that she always felt safe when she went out. Jacob took a slightly different approach: given his way, he'd never let Claire leave the camp!

Robin was furious that they'd let her attacker get away. There had been six of them chasing after the attacker and he'd _still _managed to elude them. Robin constantly had the gang search the forest for any sign of him but there never was. By the end of the second week, everyone was starting to think that the stranger might have just been drunk and (hopefully) had disappeared.

"We've been walking over the same parts of the forest about fifty times! I now know this forest like the back of my hand!" complained Much as they came back from yet another patrol. Whilst Jacob and Will thought that Claire was attacked for a reason, Much had been highly sceptical and doubted that the stranger held a personal grudge against her.

"Quit complaining you moron!" snapped Jacob irritably.

"We have no leads on who attacked Claire so we might as well wait for him to show up again!" said Much.

"And risk Claire getting attacked again? Ooh yeah let's do that and then we'll be able to go on with a dead girl on our conscience and I'M REALLY STARTING TO LOSE IT NOW!" said Jacob almost sounding hysterical as well as sarcastic. Much shuffled his feet guiltily.

"Did she see his face?" he asked Will who shook his head.

"Claire said that he sneaked up on her and took her by surprise. It was too dark to see his face," he replied.

"Where is she by the way?" asked Jacob.

"Oh she went with Robin and Allan. We all split into three teams. Us three, Claire, Robin and Allan and Emma, John and Djaq. Robin said that if we did that, then we'd cover more area. Waste of time if you ask me," said Much.

"Well we didn't ask you!" snapped Will. He partly blamed Much for Claire's attack. If she hadn't overheard Much's disapproving comment about her, she wouldn't have run into the forest and therefore wouldn't have been strangled.

"Are you three arguing again?" called a voice. They all looked around and saw Allan, Claire and Robin all arrive at the camp.

"Find anything?" asked Jacob. They shook their heads.

"What about you?" asked Allan.

"Yes I've discovered a new set of bruises from falling over logs and bushes, searching for this man!" said Much.

"No one asked _you_ to come and help," said Claire coldly.

"Much, as soon as we've found _something _that'll help us bring this man down, I _promise _that you can have a break from looking around the forest. But until then you'll have to help us," said Robin exasperatedly.

"But that could be ages away!" he whined.

"It'll take ages because you won't stop whining," said Claire coolly. Much glared at her.

"I wish the others would get here soon," he said.

"We're here!" came Djaq's voice from the entrance of the camp.

"Good. Did you lot find anything?" asked Robin. Djaq and John quickly glanced at each other and at Emma as though they weren't sure what to say.

"Umm…" said Djaq uncertainly.

"No. We didn't find anything. Sorry!" said Emma, a little too quickly. Much groaned.

"Shut up and cook me something that's not rat, squirrel or pigeon in some cunning disguise," ordered Jacob. Much stalked off, muttering to himself. The others shrugged and sat about the camp, doing their own thing. Robin snatched up his bow and quiver of arrows and went around the back of the camp to practice. Will sat away from the gang, carving something out of wood. He had to sit with his back to them because Jacob kept trying to look at what he was doing.

"Lemme see!" said Jacob eagerly

"No!" snapped Will.

"Go on!"

"Go away!"

"You will because you love me!" said Jacob.

"I won't because I don't love you!" said Will. Hearing this, Jacob immediately feigned a look of hurt and pretended to start crying on Djaq's shoulder.

"Awww Jake!" said Claire, trying not to smile. Everyone laughed and Djaq patted his back.

"Will doesn't love me!" Jacob sobbed dramatically.

"I might if you weren't so annoying and if you didn't have that sadistic sense of humour," said Will. Jacob glared at him.

"Hey! Much is the annoying one and if I didn't have my sadistic sense of humour, the world would be a _very _dull place!" he shot back, indignantly.

"Take us to the dull place!" exclaimed Claire, earning herself a hit in the arm from Jacob.

"Am I missing all the fun?" called Robin from behind the camp.

"No they're all teasing me!" Jacob shouted back attempting to sound forlorn.

"Like I said 'am I missing all the fun?'" replied Robin.

"You're laughing at my pain?" Jacob asked the others.

"We laugh at everyone's pain but our own…" said Allan dryly.

Leaving the others to tease Jacob, Will went back to carving whatever it was and Claire sat next to Emma, who had been very quiet ever since she got back from the patrol.

"Are you alright?" she asked her. Emma nodded. She looked oddly pale and it wasn't like her to be the quiet one.

"Something is wrong because I'm usually the quiet one. You don't feel ill do you?" Claire asked her. Emma shook her head. It wasn't very convincing but Claire decided not to push the matter. After all Emma never pushed questions when Claire didn't feel like talking. That's why she was a good friend.

Robin suddenly came sprinting back around the camp, looking excited and flushed.

"What's up?" asked Allan, barely glancing at Robin.

"There are a couple of people on the road, coming into Locksley. Let's see if they have purses!" said Robin, looking eagerly around the gang.

"Sure! Why not?" said Jacob brightly.

"Are we going to lure them into a trap or something?" asked Much. Robin's eye's glinting maliciously.

"There is something I've been _dying _to try…"

_Before the ambush…_

"Note to self: Never let Robin suggest the trapping or scaring off ideas!" muttered Jacob darkly. He and Claire were hiding among the roots of a large oak tree. The idea that Robin had been 'dying to try' was to disguise the entire gang like trees and then leap out on the two travellers. Jacob's face was covered with brown paint and he had several leaves and twigs in his hair. All of the boys had laughed themselves silly when they first saw the sight of him.

"I mean we want to frighten them a little bit, not scare the life out of them," he hissed.

"Shut up. They're coming!" whispered Claire urgently. She pointed at two figures walking down the path. One was a fairly old man with one hand missing and the other figure was a lot younger who looked oddly familiar at maybe fifteen or sixteen. Claire and Jacob waited for the signal with baited breath. Allan threw a rock onto the path in front of the men, making them jump.

"Here it comes…" whispered Jacob.

"AAAARRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

All of the gang leapt out of their hiding places, shrieking and waving their weapons like maniacs. Claire could've sworn that the younger traveller jumped about a foot into the air before turning and running away with his companion. Claire streaked down the path after them, chasing them towards the trap Robin and Will had set up. Robin fired one of his arrows which cut through a rope holding up a large weight. As the weight fell, so did a net, which the two men ran straight into. Claire stopped running and stood there watching the two men struggle in the net. Jacob had to lean onto her shoulder for support because he was laughing so hard.

"Cease this ambush!" cried one of the men.

"A little of what you have, could be a lot for the poor!" shouted Robin.

"But we are the poor!" replied the younger man. Looking at their clothing, they probably were. Claire glanced at Will, who was staring at the two men. He was smiling.

"DAD!" he cried before rushing towards them and pulling both of them into a hug.

"Awww…" said Emma. She loved family reunions. Jacob chuckled nervously, shuffling his feet but Claire stared at Will and his family in amazement. This was new to her. When Will ran up to his Dad, Claire was expecting his Dad to give him a clip around the ear, just like her father whenever he greeted her, but no! There was no violence between them, unlike her family. There was so much love and happiness that Claire had never seen in a family before. Or was it just a ruse? Was it all pretend and Will's father was just as abusive as hers.

'He can't be,' thought Claire. 'It'd be really obvious if it was fake,'

"You know these people?" Djaq asked Will.

"My Dad, Dan Scarlet! And my little brother Lukey!" Will cried happily.

"I'm not little!" said Luke, giving Will a push. Will pulled him into a hug.

"Alright my BIG little brother then!"

Everyone went up to Dan and Luke to shake there hands, except Claire, who suddenly felt really shy. She had a funny feeling that Dan and Luke weren't just popping in to say 'hi'. Will however pulled her over and insisted that he introduce her to his brother and father.

"Dad, Luke, this is Claire. She's a…friend. Claire, this is Luke and my Dad, Dan," he said cheerfully. Luke smiled at her brightly.

"Yes. You did say," said Claire quietly. She politely shook their hands, but tried her best to keep her distance. They all headed back to the camp, talking loudly. As soon as they were in the camp, Claire bounded to the other side, trying to keep away and let Will enjoy having his family back.

"You have some interesting _friends_," Dan said to Will. Will immediately noticed how his father looked from Claire to him with a cocked eyebrow.

"We're not…" Will stuttered but Dan laughed.

"Of course you're not!" he cried, slapping Will's shoulder.

"She's very shy…" noted Luke.

"Yeah she's…like that," said Will uneasily.

He glanced at Claire anxiously. She shook her head, silently asking him not tell them about her family. Will seemed to have got the message because he changed the subject.

"So…why are you here?" he asked.

"To come take you back to Scarborough!" said Dan, like it was an obvious. Claire's mouth fell open in surprise. Her fear had been confirmed and everyone gaped at Dan. Will was so shocked he couldn't speak for a moment.

"But I can't leave! I've got a life here!" said Will when he finally found his voice.

"But you could make a decent living back in Scarborough!" said Dan bracingly.

"Yeah but I'm an outlaw! I stand for what I believe in! Robin can you tell my father that I'm a man now and I can make my own decisions," said Will.

"A man does listen to advice Will," said Robin. Will, and Claire from behind Robin's back, glared at him fiercely.

"Thank you Robin," said Dan.

"But Will does have a life here. You should see it before you take him away from it," replied Robin. Claire caught Will's eye and smiled hopefully.

"Come to Nottingham tomorrow," suggested Robin. "Let us show you what we do." Dan sighed and agreed, somewhat reluctantly. Will glared at his father and stalked off and sat next to Claire. She tried very hard not to look at him.

"What do you think I should do?" he asked her.

"Why ask me?" she asked quietly, still not looking at him. Will swallowed and stared at his feet. His answer to that would be 'Because I love you and never want to leave you' but he didn't want to say that in front of Luke or his Dad.

"Because…I've got a life here and don't want to leave," he mumbled, wishing that Claire would look at him.

"It's not up to me to decide Will. I would like it if you stay but if you chose to leave then I'd be happy with that. You're the only one who can choose Will," she said, trying not to sound cold. There was a part of her answer that Will really liked.

'_I would like it if you stay.' _He began to let himself wonder if Claire felt the same way about him, something he hadn't let himself think about. He tried to smile at her but was disappointed as Claire was still staring determinedly away from him.

She remained that way for the rest of the evening. Even when they were all sitting in a circle around the fire, she just couldn't look at Will. And when she was facing him, she wasn't looking at him but at the space in front of him. She even had a tough time talking to Will. It was like she was trying to hide something which was weird for Will as she never hid anything from him. It was inwardly driving him mad.

Claire however was trying to hide something: her feelings. She knew that if Will could go and earn a decent living then it would be a very good thing but she also knew that she'd be heartbroken if he left. Because she had Will around, Claire felt safe and secure and she could let go of her tormenting past. If Will left, then it would all come back and haunt her. It was like he was the light at the end of the dark tunnel for Claire. She just prayed that Dan would decide that Will might be better off here with the gang after all…

_The next day…_

Early the next day, the gang, Luke and Dan all got up and quickly went to Nottingham. Most of the gang were in cheerful moods, particularly John who was fond of giving to the poor. Allan, however seemed slightly uneasy and didn't make eye contact with anyone and Will was still sour about his father's inability to see how much the gang needed him. The streets were packed and noisy with several peasants, some working in run down stalls and others begging. Robin handed everyone bags of money and told them to go and 'spread some happiness' as he called it. Jacob so nearly said 'That's so gay man!' but was silenced by glares from his sister and her best friend.

"Oh come on! Don't tell me you didn't think it sounded gay?" he demanded while they handed some money to a couple of beggars.

"Jacob, I swear to God! If you don't shut your f***ing mouth in two seconds, I'm gonna smash your face with a boulder!" snapped Claire, who was in a very edgy mood from the previous night. Jacob didn't need to be told twice as Emma also didn't look in the mood for his jokes. He crept away from them and continued to hand out coins.

"See? These people need me here!" Claire overheard Will telling his Dad.

"We need you too! You're family!" Dan replied.

Claire sighed. At this rate, she seriously doubted that Dan would change his decision about bringing Will home. The guy was adamant.

Everything seemed to be going well so far. They hadn't been rumbled by any patrolling guards and loads of people were delighted of having some money in order to feed their families. Claire however felt uneasy. There were quite a few tall wooden posts lying about in the street and guards were standing by them, as if they were waiting for a signal or something. Claire eyed them suspiciously, trying to figure out what they could possibly be used for but her train of thought was broken by Much.

"Quite a successful day really! I think Dan might let Will stay!" said Much cheerfully as he shook out his empty money bag. Claire had to admire his optimism.

"HELP! PLEASE! ROBIN PLEASE HELP!" came a woman's cry.

"Uh oh!" said Claire. She looked around and saw a woman carrying a little girl in her arms. The girl 's eyes were closed.

"You spoke too soon, Much!" said Emma. They all ran over to the woman with the little girl and crowded around them. Robin took the child from her.

"Robin, its Jess. She's caught something! I think she's caught the pestilence!" the woman wailed.

"Get Djaq!" ordered Robin. Jacob nodded and ran off.

Claire looked at Jess' face which was very flushed. Claire could see several beads of sweat on Jess' forehead.

"She looks like she's burning up," she whispered. Dan felt Jess' forehead.

"Hmm…there are no swellings… How long has she been like this?" he asked.

"Just since this morning," replied her mother anxiously. Behind them, a loud trumpet sounded, telling them that the Sheriff was going to make an announcement. They all turned and saw Marian with a large scroll in her hand. She looked like she'd rather be somewhere else at the moment but she cleared her throat and began reading out.

"People of Nottingham!" she called. "On behalf of the Sheriff, I make the following announcement: The pestilence has come to Nottingham!"

Several people gasped and looked frightened. Jess' mother's fear had been confirmed.

"My God! That's what it is!" she gasped. Dan shook his head.

"No it isn't," he insisted.

"Do not be afraid," continued Marian. "It is confined to the houses of Pitt street. There will be a quarantine placed around the street. No one is to pass through without permission. No one is to pass food or medicine-"

"WHAT? This young one is suffering! They can't be cut off with nothing!" cried Dan, interrupting Marian. He was glaring at the Sheriff. Marian was faltering in her message.

"To do so…risks spreading the infection…and will be punished by death," she stated, glancing at the Sheriff who looked very pleased. People on the street were disappearing into houses and Jess' mother was nearly crying.

"What are we going to do? She's going to die!" she wept.

"No she isn't! That's not what she's got!" insisted Dan. Robin gave Jess back and told Sara to take her home.

"Djaq and I will come soon," he promised her.

"We will not be cowered by this infection. Business will continue as normal!" Marian continued.

"That's not Marian's game…" said Much.

"She's just doing what she's told…" said Robin. Marian finished the message and looked into the crowd. She eventually spotted Robin, Claire and the rest of the gang. Her eyes begged them to help the sick.

"Robin! We've got to do something!" hissed Will, eyeing the Sheriff with pure hatred.

"If it's really the pestilence then how are we gonna help people?" Emma asked Claire.

"Why ask me?" Claire said quietly.

"Because you nearly always have an answer for everything," said Emma. Claire stared at her friend and thought for a moment.

"Well Dan has experienced the pestilence before. If he says it isn't the plague then it isn't," she said finally.

"The Sheriff is probably up to something then," mused Emma not taking her eyes off the Sheriff's satisfied smirk.

"SHERIFF THIS IS NOT RIGHT!" shouted Dan, striding forward to confront the Sheriff. Robin hissed at him and tried to hold him back, but Dan ignored him.

"What?" drawled the Sheriff, turning towards Dan.

"I've just had a look at a young lass and it's not the pestilence. I've seen it before in Scarborough. These people must have food and water and medicines!" shouted Dan furiously.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" shouted the Sheriff angrily.

"I'VE SHUT UP FOR YOU, SHERIFF! It cost me my wife, my hand and the respect of my son so I'm not shutting up anymore!" he said showing everyone in the crowd his arm that didn't have a hand. Claire admired his guts.

'If only I'd thought to say that when mum and dad told me to shut up,' she thought. Will was staring at his father, wide eyed and scared looking. The gang watched anxiously as Dan continued to confront the Sheriff.

"Now why are you-" started Dan but he was cut off. By a large, scary looking guard carrying a knife. Dan's eyes widened in shock when the knife was pushed into his back and he let out a strangled cry as it went in deeper. As the guard pulled the knife out of his back, Dan fell to floor. He was dead.

"DAD!!!" screamed Will, lunging forward, desperate to get to his fallen father. Emma and Claire had both screamed as well but were trying to help Robin, John and Jacob hold back a hysterical Will. Much and Djaq were busy keeping Luke back, who was sobbing his heart out.

"Will! You can't kill the Sheriff! You know what will happen!" hissed Robin as Will uttered death threats towards the Sheriff.

"I don't care!" spat Will, still struggling furiously. Claire managed to grab hold of one of his flailing arms. His head turned wildly towards her and she glared at him.

"Will calm down!" she said firmly. For a moment Will glared back at her but gradually he stopped fighting and his eyes filled with tears. Claire pulled him into a hug and patted his back comfortingly. He cried onto her shoulder for a moment before pulling away and hugging his weeping brother. Meanwhile the Sheriff had congratulated Dan's killer and was ordering that the barricades be set up. Jacob shouted insults at the Sheriff and flipped him off. Everyone on the street began to disappear into their homes as the guards carried some large wooden posts towards the entrances of Pitt Street.

"Robin. What do we do?" asked Claire. Robin looked angry and worried at the same time, trying to quickly make up his mind.

"We stay and help," said Robin, "Quickly go to Pitt Street with Jacob, Emma and Will and Luke and we'll meet you in there. Start collecting medicines, food and water. We can't let these people die," Claire nodded and motioned at Jacob and Emma to follow her. She went over to Will who was still holding a sobbing Luke.

"Will, we have to go," she said softly. When Will didn't give her a response, she tugged on his sleeve. "Will, the Sheriff won't get away with this but right now people are dying and they need our help." Will cast his eye around the guards setting up the barricades and nodded. Most of the entrances to Pitt Street were now blocked so they had to move fast. They slipped past the guards and into the streets. Peasants were banging their fists against the barricades, begging to be let through or to have food. Claire and the others pushed through the crowd and hid under a shelter. Luke sat down on the floor, crying quietly.

"Well, we're in. Now what do we do?" asked Emma.

"Robin told me that we should start collecting medicines and any spare food and water so we can start helping people. He said that he'd meet us in here," said Claire.

"Well he better hurry up because the barricades are almost done," said Jacob, unaware that Robin and the others had just appeared behind him.

"Talking about us?" asked Much. Jacob glared at him for making him jump.

"We better get started. Jacob, John and Much you start making beds out here. Claire, Emma you start collecting medicines and food," Robin ordered. Jacob nodded and disappeared with John and Much in one direction while Emma went off in another. Before Claire followed her, she heard Will say to Robin:

"I'm going to take Luke home, to Scarborough," he muttered. Robin looked at Will and then at Luke who still had tears in his eyes.

"Okay. Make sure you get back safe," said Robin before running off to help Jacob carry a large bed out of a house.

"Be careful Will!" Claire called anxiously. Not waiting for an answer she turned and disappeared into the crowd. She stopped at peoples homes and sometimes they had food or medicine but mostly she walked away empty handed. Claire looked through a gape in the barricades and saw a couple of guards, dragging away Dan's lifeless body.

'What are you up to Sheriff?' she thought to herself.

_A little while later…_

Claire gently dabbed at a peasant's forehead with a wet cloth and put some of the belladonna onto his tongue.

"It's okay. You'll get better," she said, smiling kindly at him. The past few hours had been hard for Claire. She had seen several people die because they hadn't worked out a cure for the poison. She'd hated seeing the lights leave their eyes and then their loved ones weeping around them. It wasn't only that. Claire couldn't take her mind off Will and the look of shock, anger and hatred that was on his face when Dan was killed and the way his eyes had filled with tears when he'd been held back from getting to his fallen father.

'I never thought I'd see him so angry. I've known that the world is cruel, look at my parents! But I never thought it could be this evil.' Thought Claire sadly as she got up and moved to a different bed to treat someone else.

"Hey Claire," said Emma, catching up to her friend. Claire smiled weakly at Emma, her face pale and worried.

"Hi Emma," said Claire quietly. Emma could see that Claire was still shocked about Dan's sudden death and was fretting about Will and Luke. She couldn't blame her personally.

"Has Djaq found anything against the poison?" asked Emma hopefully. Claire nodded.

"John said that belladonna would work as a cure and it does. People are getting better," said Claire.

"But isn't belladonna a poison?" asked Emma curiously. How could a poison make people get better?

"Yes but it fights the poison from the angel of death. They cancel each other out sort of. Does that make sense?" she asked after explaining.

"Umm…yes I think so. That Joseph guy was such a creep. Anyway have you seen Allan?" asked Emma. Claire shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm not sure _where _he is but I know that he said that he'd deliver a letter for Robin. He's probably outside the barricades," said Claire. Emma tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice but she failed miserably.

"Oh. Okay," she said sadly. Claire's expression changed faster than a blink of an eye. Her worried look immediately became gleeful.

"Ooh. _You like Allan!_" she teased. Emma's face went scarlet and she bit her lip in embarrassment. Emma could see that she wasn't going to get out of this one.

"Well…maybe," she admitted, shuffling her feet. Claire's green eyes sparkled brightly.

"Do you want me to tell him?" she asked.

"No no! Please don't! I wouldn't live it down if I lived to be a million!" Emma cried desperately. Claire dropped her teasing attitude.

"But he might like you too! I bet he does! You two get along really well and also you look _dead _cute together!" she said encouragingly. Emma snorted which told Claire that she wasn't trying to get her hopes up.

"If he doesn't like you then I'm gonna book him into a mental asylum!" said Claire. Emma still didn't look convinced and Claire was starting to lose patience with her.

"Oh come on Emma! You're so sweet and understanding. It's hard _not _to like you! Besides, he knows that I'd murder him on the spot if he _dare _hurt you in anyway!" said Claire firmly. Emma grinned weakly at her.

"Do you really think he'd like me? Even though I'm about four years younger?" she asked. Claire nodded.

"Definitely! I've seen the way he looks at you sometimes. I bet he fancies you!" said Claire, beaming. Emma blushed and grinned.

"I better go. Robin said he wanted me to help him treat more people," she said, turning her back and walking down the street.

"Ok bye!" said Claire, waving. She gave the next couple of peasants the antidote when she remembered that she was supposed to give Emma some of it.

"Oh I'm so stupid!" she cursed. Claire hurried down the street which Emma had gone down which was almost deserted and she spotted Emma at the other end. Claire was about to call out but she saw a familiar hooded figure approach Emma from behind. Claire recognised him immediately. This was the man that had attacked her, a couple of weeks ago! The man leapt at Emma and covered her mouth with his gloved hand so her screams were muffled. Emma thrashed against his arms but he was too big and a lot stronger. Claire watched, frozen to the ground, her mouth hanging open, too shocked to scream or shout. Emma stopped fighting and went limp in the stranger's arms. She'd been drugged! The man swung her over his shoulder and hurried away towards some barricades which were being held open for him.

"STOP! YOU B*****D!"

Claire had finally found her voice and her feet. She sprinted down the street, shrieking loudly. The man ran as fast as he could, whilst trying not to drop Emma. Several peasants tried to stop him, but the stranger swatted them away as if they were mere flies. He rushed through the door in the barricades and it was shut behind him. Claire smashed her fists against the wood, half screaming half sobbing. Her feelings were a mixture of shock, fear, hate and anger.

'This must be how Will felt when Dan was killed,' she thought.

"No…no. Emma won't die! I won't let Emma die!" Claire sobbed. She glanced through a crack in the wooden bars and saw Emma being dragged into the castle. Part of Claire was telling her to go find Jacob or Robin and tell them what happened but another part was telling her to forget about the others and save Emma.

"I'm coming Emma!" whispered Claire.

No one was there to hold her back or to talk her out of it. She looked for something to help her climb over the fences. She saw that she'd have to climb on top of one of the houses if she wanted to get over. And she wanted to get over. Badly. She climbed onto a barrel and put her hands onto the roof of the nearest house to check if it would take her weight. Satisfied, she jumped onto the roof and got ready to jump to another roof on the other side of the gates. It was quite a short jump and Claire knew that she could make it easily and there was only one guard that could see her.

'If he sees me then I'll have to knock him out or something,' thought Claire. She took a few steps back and did a running jump, holding onto her dress in case it caught onto the tips of the gates. She landed on the other roof with a thump and she carefully slide down. When her feet touched the ground, the guard spotted her.

"Hey, what are you doing?" he asked. Claire didn't answer and she punched him in the face, wincing when she felt his nose break under her fist. She didn't have time to hide his body as she had to find Emma. She hid behind the steps to the castle and checked that there were no approaching guards. When none came, she hurried up the stairs and into the castle. She ran through corridors and down flights of stairs, heading towards the dungeons, occasionally stopping to check that the knife Djaq had lent her was still in her pocket and to avoid two guards that appeared at one point. Deeper and deeper into the castle Claire fled and the atmosphere became darker and colder. But that didn't stop Claire. She had no idea what that strange man wanted with Emma, but there was no way that he was going to get away with taking her like that. She rounded a corner and ran straight into someone. Claire furiously tried to beat away his arms which were clasped around her.

"Let go of me!" she snapped, still trying to run towards the dungeon steps which were now in plain view.

"Claire, it's me!" replied a familiar voice. Claire briefly stopped fighting and stared at the man in front of her.

"Will? What are you doing here?" she asked. Will grimaced.

"I'd ask you the same thing," he said darkly. Claire studied Will intently. There was something different about him. Something darker, more sinister about him and she didn't like it. She pushed away his hands.

"We need to talk," said Will, holding onto her arm tightly.

"Not now!" she hissed.

"Yes now!" Will insisted. Claire slapped his arm away and shrieked:

"MOVE IT!"

Will was so shocked at her outburst that he actually let go of her. She ran down the remainder of the corridor and practically flew down the steps. She threw a door open and before she could even call out, she spotted Emma lying onto the floor, still out cold. Claire stepped forward and something hard and cold hit against her head. Claire's yelp of pain was muffled by a gloved hand covering her mouth. Claire was dazed from the bump on her head. Everything went in and out of focus and eventually…everything went black…

**DUN DUN DUN!!!!**

**Well what did you think? If you thought it was good and you have some good advice to offer then go ahead and review! If not…then don't review. XD **


	6. A father, a friend and a brother

**Ok here's the next chapter. Here, we find out who is the kidnapper and yes as the title suggests, there's something that only Jacob knows about Claire that the others don't. If you want to find out then go ahead and read and review it. I was a bit disappointed by the lack of reviews I had on the previous chapter so please cheer me up with praise, advice and constructive criticism ******

**A father, a friend and a brother who knew the truth about Claire.**

Claire lay on the hard, cold floor, her eyes shut tightly and her head throbbing from when she'd been knocked out. She could hear someone crying and someone talking. The voice sounded so familiar it sent chills down Claire's spine. There was a sound of a sharp slap and whoever it was that was crying suddenly stopped. She heard an iron door open and shut and she heard heavy footsteps approaching.

"Wake up," said the familiar voice.

'Not you,' thought Claire, not moving.

"Wake up, slut!" said the voice, kicking Claire in the ribs. Claire lazily opened one eye and eyed the man in front of her with pure hatred.

"You really are tenacious," she said coldly. The man slapped her across the face and spat on her.

"Little slag! Did you really think you could get away from me? Didn't I even tell you that if you tried to get away I'd just make it worse for you?" hissed her father, hitting her repeatedly across the face. Claire could feel her father's fists against her cheeks, yet there was no pain. She could feel the energy and strength that he was putting into the punches yet it was almost as if she'd been numbed against the pain.

"Is that all you've got?" she jeered at him "You're losing your touch!" He father growled and kicked her again.

"How did you follow me? And what did you do to Emma? I swear if you've hurt her, I'll kill you!" Claire snarled, sitting up and glaring at him.

"I got here the same way you did-," he started but Claire interrupted.

"What? You were cornered by a psychopath and you wished to be safe?" said Claire bitterly. He slapped her again.

"Of course not! You left a rip in the time rift when you jumped back in time and I managed to get through it to go after you. As for your _friend, _how did you think I was gonna get to you? After I failed catching you off your guard in the woods a couple of weeks ago I thought I'd try and be a bit cleverer with my apprehending methods," he said, smiling nastily at her. She glared fiercely at him.

"You let Emma go. She's nothing to you; I'm the one you want. Just hurt me, don't hurt her," said Claire angrily, trying to stand up so she could stand her ground against him but he roughly pushed her down and laughed like a maniac.

"You think this is about you! Well, part of it is. The Sheriff ordered me to capture one of Robin Hood's outlaws so we could torture him or her for information and then bring down the outlaws. When I found out that you were part of the outlaw's gang, I automatically chose you because you're so enjoyable to beat until now. You'd have normally cracked by now. _Tell me where Robin Hood's camp is,_" he said, glaring at her as if to try and make her start screaming. Claire smiled mockingly up at him.

"Coming to this period of time has either made you a lot softer or made me a whole lot tougher. You call this torture? I can't feel a thing!" she said, giggling nastily.

"You insane, pathetic little slut! You're not tough! You've been whoring up to the big, strong male outlaws who you think will be coming to rescue you!" he snarled and he started hitting her again.

"I have not! Don't talk about Will – I mean my friends that way! And they will be coming to rescue me! Just you wait! I'll never break! You'll never get me to betray the gang!" she shouted, furiously kicking him in the shins to make him stop. He suddenly yanked her into the air by her throat. This Claire felt, his large fingers tightening around her neck, cutting off her oxygen.

"Who's Will? HUH? WHO'S WILL?" he roared in her face, making her eyes widen in fear. He raised his fist and slammed it right on top of her head. Claire yelped loudly felt herself being thrown back onto the floor where she lay motionless. Her father spat on her again and turned on his heel and opened the door to the cell violently.

"Watch her and make sure she doesn't escape!" he snapped at a guard who had just entered. The guard scowled at him but agreed and glared at his retreating back. The guard shifted his gaze towards Claire's still body. It sickened him that a man was torturing his own daughter for pleasure. He watched as Claire curled into a ball, crawled into a dark corner and started fiddling with her tag that marked her as an outlaw. He smiled and had half a mind to unlocked the cell door and let her go. But he knew that would only get him and her into deeper trouble. He was supposed to be on the Sheriff's side but that was only to protect his family. He would have defected years ago if Gisborne hadn't threatened to kill his nephew and niece.

"Are you alright?" he asked Claire. She stopped playing and her head snapped up.

"What do you want?" she hissed.

"No need to snap," he said coldly. Even though he couldn't see her face, he could feel her eyes glaring at him.

"I'm not alright. The gang has no idea where I am and I want to know if Emma's alright," she muttered sadly.

"Your friend is safe. The Sheriff thinks that it'll be a clever plot to make you think that Emma will be hurt in order to make you spill some information. He's says that Emma is better use to him unhurt," he replied, trying to sound kindly but Claire shot him a piercing look.

"You're a guard. Aren't you supposed to be helping the Sheriff get information out of me instead of telling me that he's bluffing?" she asked suspiciously. The guard scowled.

"If I'd have had my own choice I wouldn't even be in the Sheriff's services! I can't stand all the plots and lies and wickedness! He threatened to kill the only family I've got left!" he said, kicking at the bars of Claire's cell. She crawled forward into the light so he could see her face. To her surprise he suddenly back away from the cell.

"Sorry. Not supposed to get too close," he muttered. Claire stared at him, bemused.

"What's your name?" she asked, trying to sound polite and not snappy.

"Andrew. Andrew Martin. I know your name. You're Claire aren't you? Such a small world," he mused. Claire tilted her head looking confused.

"How so?" she asked. Andrew smiled knowingly at her.

"You know: 'Oh my sweet innocent little brother! You scared me so much!' Remember?" he asked, poorly mimicking her voice.

"That was you?" asked Claire incredulously. Andrew nodded, laughing.

"I'm glad you did that. I really didn't want to see that poor lad get hurt or anything. He was a friend of my niece and nephew's," he told her.

'He seems friendly,' thought Claire, nearly smiling at him.

"Do you have a lot of family?" Claire asked cautiously. Andrew shook his head sadly.

"I have my brother in law, my nephew and my niece. My older sister died about four years ago," he said, hanging his head. Claire could tell that he was still upset about it.

"Do you mind me asking how she died?" she asked him, her tone still cautious. Andrew shook his head.

"The physician said that she died of pneumonia but I think she died of grief. About six years before my niece was born, my sister and her husband had had another baby girl but she just disappeared when she was eight months old. It's believed that she was kidnapped. I had never seen Maria so upset in my life. Even though she gave birth to Eden and Ryan years later, she could never fill the gap in her heart that her first daughter had previously occupied. Eventually, she stopped eating and just wasted away. She was barely thirty," he whispered the last part. Claire wanted to pat him on the shoulder, but she still didn't quite trust this man. Why was he pouring his memories and feelings out to a complete stranger and outlaw?

"I'm sorry," she said awkwardly.

'Maybe that's how Jacob would feel if I died,' she thought. Andrew suddenly bent down and reached through the bars of the cell and took her face in his hand. Claire slapped it away indignantly and opened her mouth to shout at him but she was interrupted by Andrew pulling out a dainty little handkerchief and handing it to her.

"Can I ask you if this means anything to you?" he asked politely. Claire was astonished by this but had answered his question before she'd even considered it.

"Yes. I had one just like this when I was little except the flowers sewn on were pink instead of blue. And my name was sewn on in the corner," she told him, eyeing him curiously. Andrew was looking at her as if he'd just seen her properly for the first time. Claire shook her head suddenly.

"This is weird. We're supposed to be on different sides and be enemies. I'm the prisoner and you're the guard. You're supposed to try and get information out of me. Instead we've been exchanging memories. You're not meant to talk to me, _you're meant to hurt me!_" said Claire. Andrew shook his head and gave her a small smile.

"I couldn't hurt you Claire. Even if I wanted to. I could never hurt you," he said simply.

The peace was suddenly interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. Both of them swore quietly and Andrew opened the door. Before he walked out Claire asked:

"Who are you?" Andrew turned and gave her another small smile.

"A friend," he replied before closing the door on her. Claire threw herself onto the floor in the corner of her cell pretending to be unconscious. She could hear her father's voice and Andrew's voice outside the door.

"Has she woken yet?" her father demanded.

"No sir. She hasn't," said Andrew. He sounded angry.

"Then I'll make her. Now get out!" ordered another voice. After Andrew's footsteps had died away, the door banged open loudly and to Claire's horror, her father and the Sheriff walked in.

"Here she is," her father grunted. The Sheriff opened the door to her cell and he kicked her in the back.

"Wake up!" he snapped. Claire pretended to stretch and yawn before glaring angrily up at him.

"Why are you poisoning those people? Why-," but she was cut off by her father slapping her around the face.

"Get up to speed. Hood discovered my poison plot two days ago and put an end to it. I came here to tell you that unless you give us information on Hood's whereabouts I'll see that you and your friend hang at dawn!" said the Sheriff icily. Claire felt as though her insides had frozen. She'd been unconscious for _two days_? The gang must be worried sick about her and Emma. Claire stared at the Sheriff, no longer able to act tough or conceal her fear.

"Don't kill Emma. She's done nothing," whimpered Claire. The Sheriff gave her a satisfied smile and turned his back on her.

"Put the other girl in with her and then torture both of them. I don't care how you do it, I want information and unless I hear screaming, you're out of the job," the Sheriff hissed at her father before striding out of the room. Before her father followed, Claire shouted at him.

"I'm telling you! If you dare hurt anyone, I will kill you!" Her father however laughed at her and disappeared into the other room. After a few minutes, he came back in, dragging Emma. Claire's jaw dropped open in horror. Emma's face was covered in bruises and she was bleeding slightly just above her eye brow. He threw her into Claire's cell and she lay very still.

"What have you done?" shouted Claire, cradling Emma's body, angry tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

"C…Cluh…Claire?" Emma whispered. Claire looked down at her friend, relieved that she was coming round. Emma opened her eyes which were puffy and bloodshot.

"Emma it's alright. He's not gonna hurt you anymore," said Claire, trying to sound calm and soothing when she really felt like ripping her dad's throat out. Emma's eyes filled with tears and they began to leak down her beaten face.

"Hey! Don't cry!" said Claire, wiping away the tears.

"Claire…I knew!" Emma whispered.

"What?"

"I knew…it was him that hurt you…in the forest weeks ago," moaned Emma. Claire stared at her, disbelief written all over her face.

"You couldn't have. How could you have known?" asked Claire, glaring at her dad who was smiling with deep satisfaction. Oh she so wanted to see him bleed. Emma sniffed miserably.

"The other day when we all went out searching, I found this weird beanie hat and I knew it was like the one your dad wears. It stank of cigarettes and vodka, I knew it was his and I guessed that he'd managed to follow us here. _But I didn't tell anyone!_" she sobbed, burying her face in her hands. Claire was still staring at Emma, not with disbelief, but with horror.

"Why? Why didn't you tell anyone?" asked Claire, trying not to sound confrontational. Emma sobbed harder.

"I was so scared! I didn't know what to think or what to say at the time. I was going to tell you the next day but then there was the poison incident and Dan getting murdered and I kept putting it off, thinking nothing would happen. _It's my entire fault!_" she wailed.

"What? It's your fault that I have a mad dad, that's so determined to ruin my life; he follows me to another period of time and captures me and my best friend?" asked Claire coldly. Emma and her father stared at her in amazement.

"You're…you're not angry at me?" asked Emma and Claire shook her head.

"I don't think it would have made a difference if you'd told us he was here or not. He caught us when our guard was down and -,"

Claire was cut off by her dad pummelling her furiously to the ground. Emma shrieked and tried to pull Claire away but was in danger of getting hit herself. When he stopped and pulled away, Emma saw that Claire now had a black eye and a cut lip.

"I'm getting sick of your chit-chat. Tell me where Robin Hood is now and there won't be anymore pain. Well for _you _there won't be_! _" he snarled in Emma's face. Claire stared darkly up at him.

"Claire. Your eye…" gasped Emma.

"What about it?"

"It's all black and looks really painful!"

"Don't worry. Doesn't hurt," Claire said truthfully.

"You're deliberately being difficult. _Where is Robin Hood?_" her dad shouted, grabbing her by the chin and forcing her to look him in the eye.

"I'm not telling _you_. You'll have to kill me first," she muttered.

"And me!" encouraged Emma.

He growled in frustration and began hitting Claire again, ignoring Emma's screams of protest. Claire's eyes began to roll in her head and he stopped hitting her. He slapped her face once more before throwing her down. Emma cried and hugged Claire tightly, trying to protect her body in case he started hitting her again.

"You leave me no choice," he growled before turning on his heel and marching out of the room. Claire fought to stay conscious in Emma's arms.

"You're so brave and tough," whispered Emma. Claire made a sceptical noise.

"That or very stupid. He's never gonna stop even if I do tell him what the Sheriff wants to know," she said.

"We could give him some fake information. Or try to tough it out until the gang tries to rescue us," said Emma, trying to make light of the situation. Claire looked forlornly up at her friend.

"Do you really think that they'll come and help us Em?" asked Claire and Emma nodded vigorously.

"They will! I know they will!" she said firmly. Claire nodded once and closed her eyes. Emma sat protectively over her friend.

'Don't give up, Claire.' She thought to herself. 'They're gonna come and get us. Jacob and Will love you too much to let you die!'

_With the gang…_

Will walked ahead of the gang, not looking behind him to see if the others were keeping up. It was very dark outside the castle which was a great cover for the outlaws trying to sneak in without being detected by guards. Will didn't care who got in his way. He had to get Claire out, no matter what the cost was. He'd lost his father and he wasn't going to lose Claire.

He'd felt slightly hurt when Claire had brushed him aside and hadn't explained why but when he'd found out that he'd let her walk into being kidnapped, he was mortified. He had been with her just moments before she'd been snatched. He knew he should have followed her but Robin had said that if he had gone after her, then he might've been kidnapped as well. The others were hissing at him to slow down.

"Will, slow down! We mustn't be seen!" whispered Robin urgently.

"Robin, I've got to get Claire out," Will muttered back desperately.

"I know but we've got to be careful and try to avoid getting into a fight. Claire and Emma could be hurt and if we get into a fight then there's a high chance we'll lose. We need to be stealthy and quiet," said Robin. Will took a deep breath and nodded. Robin motioned at the gang to split into two teams.

"No! Allan! Go with John, Much and Djaq!" hissed Robin. Allan glared at him.

"I want to find Emma," he shot back quietly.

"We all want to find Emma and Claire, you pillock!" said Jacob angrily, who was likely to explode at any moment unless they found his sister quickly. Robin groaned angrily but quietly. Now wasn't the time for an argument.

"_Fine!_ You three go and find the girls and I'll go with Djaq and look out for guards," whispered Robin. Will, Jacob and Allan were happy with this and they split up.

"How do we get in?" murmured Will.

"The front door?" Jacob asked. The serious situation clearly hadn't affected his cheekiness and this earned him a clip around the ear from Allan.

"Robin told me about a secret passage that leads to the dungeon," muttered Allan leading them forward. They pulled their hoods up over their heads so they blended in with the shadows as they crept into the courtyard of the castle, being careful not to trip on anything. Allan led them to a door way that was under the steps to the castle. He unlocked it and they all slipped through quietly. Will had to squint in order to see through the darkness. They appeared to be in some kind of cellar. Allan pushed some large barrels aside, revealing a small door. Allan pushed it open and looked out to check for guards. He stooped through it and beckoned the other two to follow him. Will tried to follow but found some kind of fabric blocking his way.

"It's only a tapestry. We had to make sure this was hidden," whispered Allan, correctly interpreting Will's silence. Will pushed the tapestry aside and stepped out into a dimly lit corridor. The very one where Claire had bumped into him two days ago. They started down the steps leading to the dungeons when they heard a muffled yelp coming from a private cell. Will felt his blood boil and all three of them draw their weapons. Jacob began muttering curses that were mainly made up of blaspheme and swear words. Allan, acting fast, motioned for Will to hide behind the door and he quickly knocked on it and backed away. There was a brief pause and then the door opened. A tall man walked through the door, looking confused and Will hit him on the head from behind, knocking him out. He and Allan dashed through the door into the cell. Emma was sitting behind the bars, nursing her bruised wrist while crying her eyes out. Claire was nowhere in sight.

"Emma! Are you alright?" asked Allan, unlocking the door and running to her side. He tried to dry her tears but Emma brushed him away impatiently.

"I'm fine! Don't save me! Save Claire! They've taken her away to be…to be…" she couldn't finish her sentence because she was so overcome by grief. Will's throat tightened. He knew what Emma was going to say. _They've taken her away to be hanged!_ He glanced at Jacob who was shaking with anger; his eyes, which were stormy, grey with fury burned with hate and fury. He was displaying how Will felt on the inside. Allan gingerly helped Emma to her feet and pulled her out of the cell.

"Let's get out of here," he told them.

"I'm not leaving with out Claire!" said Will furiously, glaring at his friend.

"Hey! You're forgetting that Robin and the others are out there where the hanging takes place. For all we know they might have already saved her. We need to get out before someone notices us!" snapped Allan. The four of them headed out of the dungeons, back down the corridors and through the secret passage way.

Jacob tried to walk out into the open but Will held him back.

"See if they're out there," he whispered.

"If you mean Robin and Djaq then-"

"No you idiot! I'm talking about Claire and the Sheriff!" hissed Will angrily. Jacob poked his head through the door, looking out into the moonlit courtyard.

"No one's there. It's empty," muttered Jacob.

"Claire was taken away about a minute before you arrived," said Emma sadly.

"I can see Robin and judging by the way he's waving at me, he can see me too," said Jacob. He pushed through the door and hurried over to the leader.

"Well?" asked Robin expectantly.

"We've got Emma but Claire's going to be hanged," replied Jacob. Robin's eyes widened in horror.

"Why would-" he started but stopped short. He was listening intently. There was a distance sound of several people's footsteps coming from inside the castle.

"S***! Everyone hide!" ordered Robin before disappearing into the shadows. Will hid behind one of the market stalls, peering around it to see what was happening. Six guards marched down the steps, followed by the Sheriff and some other man that Will didn't recognise but was obviously the Sheriff's lieutenant or something. When he saw Claire, he wanted to leap from his hiding place and pull her away from those dangerous men. She had a black eye, bruised cheek, cut lip and Will could see bloodstains on the sleeves of her dress. She wasn't crying and she didn't look scared. Her face was completely emotionless as the Sheriff ordered one of the guards to tie her to the gallows. The man that was holding Claire hit her across head before letting the guard take her. Will felt his hand twitch. He desperately wanted to reach for his trusted axe and throw it into that man's skull. He looked over to where Robin was hiding and saw him whispering something to Jacob and Allan before fitting an arrow into his recurve bow and aiming it at the rope that would end Claire's life. Will could hear the Sheriff and the lieutenant talking and laughing and he could hear the drums being hit in an ominous way but none of it was going in. The only thing that registered in his mind was Claire's beautiful, beaten face. He saw her close her eyes and take a deep breath. When she opened her eyes, Will saw the sadness seep into them.

'I promised that I'd keep her safe,' he thought to himself miserably. The guard was approaching her from behind, getting ready to push Claire to her death.

'You still can,' said another voice inside his head. An arrow flew through the air and cut through the rope holding Claire up. As she dropped to the ground, the entire gang leapt out from their hiding places with their weapons drawn. The guards whirled around in surprise and the Sheriff ordered that they kill the outlaws. Will didn't pay attention to the battle that had started around him. He could only focus on Claire who was currently being hit to the ground by the Sheriff's lieutenant. Will sped towards them and punched the man right across the jaw before pulling Claire away from the fight. She was shaking and wasn't entirely sure of what was happening. When she look at Will, it took her a short moment to figure out that she was being rescued.

"Will? You came!" she said happily.

"Of course I did! You didn't think that we'd really leave you did you?" he asked. Claire smiled and shook her head. Will started to say something but was cut off.

"WILL! WATCH OUT!" Claire screamed, causing him to turn around at the last second and block the lieutenant's sword.

"Step away from my daughter!" he ordered. Will snarled angrily and threw off the attack.

"So you're the b*****d that made Claire's life hell? You really expect me to let you get away with all the things you did to her?" Will asked fiercely, swinging his axe at him. The two of them fought furiously, Will's axe hitting against her father's sword repeatedly. Even though Claire's father wasn't an experienced swordsman, the two of them were evenly matched because Will had to constantly check that no one was approaching Claire from behind him but then Jacob stepped in to the rescue. Jacob whacked his father hard over the head with his bay staff, knocking him out but Jacob continued to kick and lash out at his father, angry tears streaming down his face and swear words pouring out of his mouth. Claire ran over to his side and held him back.

"Jake, I'm ok now. Really," she said earnestly. Jacob just looked at her and shook his head.

"I need to tell you something," he said reluctantly. He sounded like the most miserable man in the universe.

"It'll have to wait until we get back to the camp. Come on let's go!" said Will, taking Claire's hand and together, the three of them ran out of the castle gates. The rest of the gang had finished taking care of the guards and soon, all of them were sprinting away through the darkness and towards safety. They didn't stop running until they reached the edge of the forest and didn't speak to each other until they were all in the camp. The gang all collapsed on their beds or by the fire that Much was lighting. Claire had hugged nearly every member of the gang (except Much) and repeatedly thanked them for rescuing the two of them. Djaq immediately began treating Emma's wrist, which had been sprained. Luckily neither of the girls had any serious injuries, just a few cuts and bruises. Will was holding a damp cloth onto the bruises on Claire's head.

"Feel any better?" he asked.

"It would if it was on the right side," said Claire, smiling at him. Will grinned bashfully and moved the cloth.

"If you two will finish flirting with each other, I have something that I need to say to Claire!" snapped Jacob. Claire and Will both went red and glared at him.

"Fine! I'm listening. Talk," said Claire angrily.

"Privately," hissed Jacob.

"If it's anything about that psychopath who kidnapped Claire and Emma then I think we should all hear it," said Robin. All of the gang was looking expectantly at Jacob, who could now see that he wasn't going to get out of this.

"Is it about our Dad?' asked Claire now sounding anxious. Jacob shut his eyes tightly, clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. These actions told the gang that he really didn't want to do this.

"Yeah," said Jacob. "Well it is about _my _Dad,"

"Your Dad is my Dad Jake-" started Claire but Jacob cut her off.

"No he's not Claire. My Dad isn't your father and my Mum isn't your mother. I have no idea who your real parents are," said Jacob sadly.

Oooh! Was anyone expecting that? Please leave nice reviews. I'll start on the next chapter right now so hopefully you won't be waiting too long. You'll also find out a bit more about this Andrew character and I know that one of his lines is from Heroes but I liked it so much I had to use it so don't flame me please!


	7. Will's kiss and Jacob's punishment

**Nothing really happens in this chapter. It's just a load of romance and comedy but still…I had fun writing it. Thanks to the reviewers and to the people who put me on story alert or favourite story. By the way if you are a fan of my character Jacob, then it is advisable that you stop reading when I give the warning. heehee**

**Will's kiss and Jacob's punishment. **

Claire stared at Jacob, not letting herself believe what he'd just said. The gang had gone painfully quiet, looking between the shocked expression on Claire's face and the sad, guilty one on Jacob's face. Robin was the one who broke the silence.

"How…how did you know?" he asked.

"How _long _have you known?" asked Djaq. Jacob shut his eyes tightly. There was no way that he could look Claire in the eye as he said this.

"Fifteen years," his voice was barely audible but these words rang through Claire's ears as loud as a canon fire.

"You…you mean…you've known… for fifteen years that… I'm not your real sister?" she asked, her voice shaking slightly. Jacob nodded.

"When I was three, Mum and Dad found a baby girl abandoned on our doorstep which they decided to take in. Even though they hated you already, they didn't want to look heartless in front of people so they took you in and privately treated you like a slave and a punching bag for seventeen years. I was six when I understood properly,"

Will wanted to slam his hand over Jacob's mouth and put all of his words back down his throat. Whilst Jacob had recounted the past, Will had been watching the hurt, shock and anger flow into Claire's eyes. It was hurting him to see her in so much pain. Unfortunately, to make matters even worse, Much had to open his mouth to point out how much Claire and Jacob looked completely different.

"MUCH! SHUT UP!" screamed the whole gang. Claire leapt to her feet, furiously hit Much and Jacob across their faces and ran out of the camp with her face in her hands.

"Of all the insensitive things you could have said!" snapped Allan furiously.

"Much how could you say that to her?" asked Emma, sounding appalled.

"Just saying…" muttered Much.

"Well next time don't 'just say'. It was bad enough me telling her that she wasn't my sister especially after she'd been kidnapped and tortured by the man she thought was her father," replied Jacob fiercely.

"You should have told her that, years ago Jacob! You'll be lucky if she even thinks about forgiving you!" said Robin, glaring angrily at Jacob.

"But-"

"No 'buts' Jacob! Claire had the right to know from the moment she learnt to talk. But instead, you wait until the moment someone tries to kill her to let her know!" retorted Robin. They were all shouting so furiously at each other, none of them noticed Will slip through the door and follow after Claire. He knew where she'd be. And sure enough, he found her seated at the bottom of a large oak tree, staring determinedly up at the sky. He could tell that she was trying very hard not to cry. Will sighed and sat down next to her. She looked at him darkly and waited for him to say something. But he didn't. Instead, he gently pulled her into a comforting, warm hug. At first, it was like hugging a pillar, but eventually Claire relaxed and her body began to shake with silent sobs. Will just sat there and held her tightly, allowing her to cry and let it all out.

"Why didn't he tell me? How could he have kept quiet for so long?" she muttered miserably.

"He didn't want to tell. He really wanted you to be his sister but I think that now after what happened, he couldn't put it off any longer," replied Will. He wiped her tears away and let her rest her head against his chest.

"It's weird. Part of me feels glad because I now know that I'm not part of that family…but another part feels sad because I did want to be Jake's sister," she muttered sadly.

"That's because you love him," said Will. Claire smiled weakly. She knew he was right.

"I'm sorry Will," she murmured. He raised an eyebrow and tilted his head slightly.

"What for?" he asked.

"For everything. I'm sorry for being so cold and bad tempered. I'm sorry that your Dad was killed. I'm sorry that I didn't let you help me when I was trying to find Emma and I'm sorry for getting captured and causing everyone trouble," she said sadly. Will rolled his eyes and shook his head, smiling.

"Ok. First of all no one's perfect. Secondly you had nothing to do with Dad's…y'know. Thirdly, I can't say I blame you for wanting to find your friend and finally, it was no trouble at all. We care about you Claire and want you in the gang," said Will firmly.

"You're very good at being perfect Will," replied Claire, making Will laugh bitterly.

"You remember that you bumped into me in the castle?" he asked darkly. Claire nodded slowly, looking slightly worried.

"I was in there because…I'd gone to kill the Sheriff," he muttered the last part.

"YOU WHAT?" Claire nearly shrieked. Will hurried explained that he _had _gone to kill the Sheriff but luckily had been stopped by Robin and the other at the last moment.

"Well…the Sheriff had killed your Dad. An eye for an eye, I guess," said Claire. Will was thoroughly relieved. Claire had looked as though she would have hit him. The two of them sat silently for a while, Claire leaning into Will's chest, listening to his heart beat.

'I love you,' Will thought to himself as he breathed in Claire's musky scent. 'I love you so much. I think you're so amazing and-'

"You're so beautiful,"

There was a long, awkward, extremely painful silence and it took Will ten seconds to realise that he'd said the last part out loud. Claire leapt away from him as though she'd just been burnt, her surprised face redder than the sun.

"Wh-what w-was th-that?" she stammered. Will wished he hadn't said anything. He was now so over come by nervousness and anxiety, he couldn't stop his hands from shaking.

"You're so beautiful?" he replied awkwardly. They stared at each other for a moment; Will trying to see what reaction he'd get and Claire trying to see if he was sincere.

"R-really?" she asked quietly, her voice high pitched and slightly squeaky. Feeling his confidence growing, he nodded his head earnestly. He could easily tell that Claire thought that he was lying or just being kind. She'd raised an eyebrow and had a sceptical expression plastered over her pretty face. Will clenched his fists, now frustrated with himself and with Claire.

"I mean it Claire! You're the most beautiful girl I've ever met!" he said trying to keep his cool and not let himself get angry. However he failed this miserably when Claire shook her head and laughed nervously.

"Yeah sure. Very good," she said sarcastically. Will growled loudly.

"OH COME ON! CAN'T YOU SEE I'M COMPLETELY IN LOVE WITH YOU?" he shouted, grabbing her arms and forcing her to look at him.

"Can't you see I'm having a nervous break down here?" she replied. Indeed she was; her arms and legs were shaking violently and beads of sweat had formed on her forehead.

"Claire, I have never loved anyone as much as you before! Everything I've done for the past three weeks has been only for you," he exclaimed, looking into Claire's eyes. She stared back at him, her eyes wide with shock. Will cupped her cheek with his large hand and slowly started to close the distance between them. Claire closed her eyes and waited for it to happen so she would know whether she liked it or not. Will took this as a good response and hastily pressed his lips against hers. The moment their lips touched, Will felt some kind of warmth rush through him, starting at his lips and finishing at his feet. He felt Claire stiffen for a moment and try to pull away but his arm was locked around her waist. He'd longed for this moment and he wasn't going to let it end that quickly. Fortunately, she started to respond to the kiss and she allowed him to deepen it. He kissed her firmly but lovingly and was delighted when she wrapped her arms around him, pulling Will closer to her. He could feel her heart beating in time to his. His hand left her cheek and threaded itself into her silky, long hair. As they continued kissing, Claire was eventually backed up against the oak tree and she opened her mouth which Will slipped his tongue into. The two of them continued like this for what seemed a life time before they broke apart, both of them quite out of breath. Will had thoroughly enjoyed kissing her; his heart and lips were tingling for more, but he looked anxiously at Claire to see if she felt the same way. She looked as though she couldn't believe what had just happened to her. Finally he saw her smile like she'd never smiled before. It was one of absolute, pure happiness which he hadn't seen on her face before. It was practically glowing.

"I love you Claire," he whispered. She nodded her head and lightly kissed him again. He tried to deepen it, but she teased him by pulling away before he had the chance, leaving him unsatisfied.

"Jake would kill us if he saw this," she said, giggling.

"Who cares?" replied Will.

"Well he _is _my…oh he's not. Well still," she said bashfully.

"So you're not angry at him anymore, are you?" asked Will and Claire shook her head.

"I'd momentarily forgotten – but now I remember!" Claire cracked her knuckles. "He and Much are SO DEAD!"

"Easy tiger," said Will jokingly. Claire laughed again and Will knew that she was back to normal.

"Come on. Let's go back," said Will, taking her hand and leading her back to the camp. When they went in, they saw that the gang was no longer arguing but Much and Jacob had been put into isolation in one of the distant corners of the camp. When she saw Claire, Emma ran up to her and hugged her tightly which Claire returned just as hard.

"Are you alright now?" asked Emma anxiously. Claire smiled brightly at her friend and nodded.

"I just needed a few kind words and a hug from my best friend to cheer me up!" she said happily. Jacob and Much gawked at her, while the rest of the gang had sceptically raised their eyebrows at Will who was failing to keep a straight face.

"Will, I don't know what you did and I'm PRETTY sure that I don't want to know…but I'm glad you did it," said Jacob who stood up and tried to hug Claire. She airily brushed him off and stood with her hands on her hips.

_**(Jacob fans stop reading now)**_

"I'm still mad at you…and we haven't decided the punishment yet-"

"Say what?" asked Jacob worriedly.

"You know how it's goes Jake. If you make me upset or angry, I'll only forgive you if I get to punish you in some painful yet amusing way. There's no way out of it! We signed a pact!" she said, grinning evilly. Jacob gulped loudly.

"I am liking the sound of this," said Robin, his eyes glinting maliciously.

"We might have to remember this for Much!" said Allan cheekily, earning himself a glare from the manservant. Jacob imagined all the possibilities of what his punishment could be, went white with fear and began to shake uncontrollably. There was a moment of silence in which the whole gang was thinking up cruel ideas for his punishment. After about 2 minutes, they came pouring out.

"Let's tie him up and make him sit in a barrel of cockroaches for a WHOLE DAY!"

"Let's put him in the stocks and throw things at him. And get rid of the key!"

"Let's bury him!"

"These are good," said Claire, "But not great. It needs to hit him right in the gut! It needs to make him _beg _for forgiveness!"

"Ok," said Much, "What's Jacob's greatest fear?"

"Horses," said Emma before Jacob could stop her.

"Really?" asked Robin gleefully.

"We just so happened to have stolen a horse!" said Allan.

"Tie him up first!" ordered Claire. Jacob knew that he was screwed and therefore decided to make a break for freedom, only to be tackled to the floor by the combined efforts of John and Will. Soon Jacob was wrestling with a tight rope bonding his wrists and ankles. Djaq and Emma ran out to untie the horse whilst the men carried a panicking, thrashing Jacob towards his doom. The horse stamped its feet nervously as Jacob was hoisted onto its back and tied down. Jacob was nearly crying with fear and was still trying to break free, but the knots binding him were too tight.

"John. I will seriously pay you a million quid if you get me out of this," wailed Jacob as the horse reared onto its hind legs.

"Million pounds is nice. The look on your face…priceless," replied John firmly and he slapped the horse, making it set off in a canter. Jacob screamed and swore at the top of his lungs and flung his tied arms around the horse's neck to prevent him from falling off as the horse bucked and reared. Meanwhile the gang howled with laughter. Robin had to lean onto a tree for support whilst Much and Allan were rolling around on the forest floor, clutching their stomachs. Djaq had tears of laughter streaming down her cheeks and Claire had gone bright red and was clinging to Will's shirt. Emma had pulled her mobile out and was trying to film Jacob on the horse but was having difficulty holding the camera straight.

"Don't you think that's just a _little _bit cruel?" asked Djaq once they'd taken a pause for breath.

"No!" replied Will.

"I think this is _extremely _cruel!" said Allan before they all fell about laughing again. This carried on for about thirty minutes before the gang decided to let Jacob off the horse. Allan managed to grab hold of the reins and calm the horse down.

"Thank you! When the world is mine your death will be quick and painless!" said Jacob, who was trembling with fear. As soon as the horse stopped, he leapt from the saddle as though he'd been electrocuted and straight into John's arms that immediately dropped him.

"I'm not carrying you," he stated.

"But I can't feel my legs!" complained Jacob, trying to crawl forward.

"But Jake! You're gonna have to get up and run!" said Emma. Jacob glared at Emma and Claire hatefully.

"Why?" he demanded angrily.

"Cos we just filmed the whole thing and we're somehow gonna send it to 'You've been framed!" said Claire gleefully. Jacob suddenly leapt to his feet and roared at the girls which sent both of them running and screaming in mock terror. Jacob pelted after them, yelling curses and insults at their backs, only to be held back by Robin and Allan.

"Now Jacob! I don't want to lose two cherished members of my gang tonight, especially after we've just got them back," said Robin sternly.

"Besides, I think those two would kill you if you slaughtered the girls they like," said Djaq, grinning cheekily at Will and Allan, who both blushed. Jacob scowled and gave up fighting.

"Is it safe?" called Emma from a far distance.

"Yes. You can come out now," shouted Much. The girls jogged back, still grinning evilly at Jacob's face.

"Ok. I've been through hell and back for you. Will you now forgive me?" demanded Jacob. Claire laughed and said that she did.

"Why are you so afraid of horses?" Will asked Jacob curiously.

"When I was eight…I got stuck in a field of horses…and the evil bastards wouldn't stop chasing me…scared the crap out of me…" mumbled Jacob. The gang found this story very amusing.

"Anyway, I think that's enough entertainment for one evening. You know that we've got to intercept the Sheriff's spy tomorrow so I think we should all turn in," said Robin.

"But I'm…not…tired," said Emma, stifling a yawn.

"Yes you are. Want me to carry you?" offered Allan.

"Ooh yes please," said Jacob.

"I wasn't offering it to you!" said Allan quickly. Reluctantly the gang went back inside the camp and laid down on their beds. After Much had put out the fire, Will stole a quick good-night kiss from Claire.

"I love you," he whispered before settling down onto his bed. That night, Claire slept with her fingers entwined with Will's and a smile plastered over her face.


End file.
